BlacknwhiteIchiRuki
by Theresa Crane
Summary: If you love Ichigo & Rukia like me, the series of 1 shots, & continuations that I've done are probably for you. Rated M for swearing & adult content, no complaints if you can't handle M material. *Also a 7 ch. series within* Kubo Tite Owns Bleach, not me!
1. Why Don't They Say It, Explanations

_Why don't they say it, Really? Explanations._

It's always been between him and her. Other people look at them and wonder what's going on between them. Other people wonder if they've realized, and whether or not they've confessed their feelings. They get asked about their relationship by people with less tact. Neither one of them have ever given a truthful answer. They either lie or do their best to avoid answering those questions altogether. Subconsciously they've only lied when the other wasn't present to hear the question or answer, and they avoid it when the other one is present.

It's not something that either one of them even really think about. Nobody else can possibly understand unless they've been through everything that Ichigo & Rukia have been through together. It started with the important act of piercing his heart with the blade of her soul. A connection had formed that neither could explain, nor did they try to. From there it grew into something huge and unexplainable.

When she was there for the revelations of how his mother had actually died, the connection they previously shared became a link. It was the first time in his life that Ichigo actually let someone completely in. Then came the way they made observations about one another. Ichigo noticably observed that she had surprisingly kind moments, and Rukia observed his growth rate and talent with quiet awe.

With all of this melding between two souls, a third party decided to throw a binding spell into the mix. That's right, in the heat of Ichigo's first battle ever with a menos grande, a powerful ex-captain put the two of them under a lasting binding spell. Even though Rukia was informed that she was in a binding spell and with him, she had no idea the extent of it. Now there was a complete fusion of souls, and new possibilities that both are unaware of are within reach for them. The spell didn't have the ability to affect their own feelings or their own hearts though, but the connection between the two is unbreakable outside of the death of one of the two.

When she was forced to leave him bleeding on the ground and go and face her crimes in Soul Society, Ichigo was prepared to face death without any regrets. If she wasn't around, his will to keep living faded considerably. Upon learning that the previously spoken of ex-captain had saved his life, his tone wasn't one of gratitude. He was sure he would never be happy again, never feel like he really wanted to be alive again...until he found out that he could save Rukia's life. That information relit the will and determination inside of his heart and soul.

Looking back, he was at his most powerful when he was fighting for her. He even went and trained to control his hollow against all odds because of her. He went lengths for her that he was afraid to attempt once he succeeded in saving her. (Like fighting and winning against Zaraki Kenpachi) When she rejoined him in the living world and made his heart race as she turned his frown upside down, something happened that had never happened before. Rukia snapped him out of his depression and actually admitted out loud to him that she keeps him in her heart. Ichigo smiled the biggest smile he'd smiled since he'd thanked her for making the rain stop, not that he was facing her for her to see it. That was probably as close to a confession that the proud girl would ever get.

When she broke the rules of Soul Society to help save their friend Inoue, she had smacked some sense back into him and reminded him that they're partners. All he could do is grin a little bit. Even though she's always the first one on his mind, he has other people he has to concentrate on whose lives are in danger. She seems to understand completely and never gets jealous or questions his intentions.

People always wonder if they know what they mean to each other and both of them inwardly roll their eyes in disgust. Nobody knows better than them how they both feel. And they don't need to say the words to understand it, actions speak louder than words anyways. Neither of them feel the need to embarrass themselves by speaking out loud what the other has already known for ages. They even both know in their hearts that they are soul mates. For the people who wonder and can't see with their own two eyes the love these two share, a deep pity should be felt. Ichigo and Rukia both know from the center of their souls to the bottom of their hearts that they love each other and that they're soul mates...meant to be together. For these two, for now, saying it would cheapen its value, since neither one is the mushy type. When one of them finally does say it out loud, the other may be shocked that the words were spoken, but will never be shocked by the feeling itself.

For these two confident people, stating the obvious isn't necessary since neither one of them have any insecurities when it comes to the other. They've both risked their lives for the other enough to not have any silly insecurities. That concludes the explanation for why they just don't say what they feel out loud.


	2. Sick Day

Ichigo hops into his bedroom window with an unconscious Rukia in his arms. He lays her in his bed and paces around his room, wondering what he should do. While they had been fighting a group of hollow, one had snuck behind her and attacked. Ichigo had been able to fight it off of her before it killed her, but there had been a lot of blood.

Inoue had healed Rukia's wounds, but she was still unconscious when the healing was finished. Inoue had offered to let Rukia stay at her apartment but Ichigo had declined. He knew Rukia would be most comfortable at his house, she's said as much in the past, not to mention he wants to keep an eye on her. He sits on the bed next to her and when he sees her shiver, he feels her forehead, but her temperature seems almost cool. As he's pulling his hand away though, her teeth chatter. Ichigo in his confusion, pulls the cover so that he can cover her, but then he sees her hands have ice in a thin layer covering them. He hadn't noticed that before.

He grabs her hands in his and he starts rubbing them quickly to apply friction, warm her hands and melt the ice. Rukia's eyes don't open and so Ichigo is surprised when he hears her voice.

"I'm so cold." he hears her say. Ichigo doesn't even think about it, he strips down to his boxers, and pulls her robe off of her, and he lays down in bed next to her. He pulls her tightly into his arms and pulls the cover over the both of them.

"I'll keep you warm." He tells her, the fear rising in his voice. Her entire body does have a rather cold feeling to it and Ichigo wonders again if she's okay. He rubs his hands up and down her back to try to warm her body some. She is still shaking like a leaf. Ichigo nervously holds her close, and softly calls out her name to keep her a bit calmer.

After several minutes, her body starts to feel like it's warming up and Ichigo sighs in relief, even though he doesn't let her go. He finally closes his eyes.

"Ichigo?" Rukia says his name, and Ichigo pulls away from her a little bit so he can look at her face.

"Thank goodness." He tightens his arms around her in happiness and relief. "You had me pretty worried for awhile there. Are you still cold?" Ichigo asks. "You were shaking so bad that I laid down with you to give you body heat." Ichigo explains as a blush tints his cheeks.

"I am a little bit cold. Will you stay with me?" Rukia asks him. Ichigo blushes harder but nods his head in a silent yes. "Thanks, Ichigo." Rukia says softly before burying her face into his chest. Ichigo tightens his arms around her but he is horrified a second later when his body starts physically reacting to being this close to her.

Now that she's okay, all he can actually think about is that he is in bed with this beautiful woman, however the way his body's reacting, she's certain to notice any moment. Ichigo tries to shift his midsection away from her so that she can't tell, but the moment he moves his middle away, she slides her arms down around his back to his waist, and she grabs his butt and forces him to hold her close from top to bottom. The moment she does, he knows his secret is out, after all his body reacted in full force to her grabbing his butt.

"Rukia?" Ichigo asks in her ear. "Do you want me to get out of bed?" He asks. He's completely embarrassed, but he's surprised when Rukia tightens her grip around him.

"Don't go anywhere, this is the nicest I've ever felt." Rukia whispers back. Ichigo blushes, but he is happy with her words.

"This is the nicest I've ever felt too." Ichigo whispers in her ear as he closes his eyes to actually enjoy the moment. He kisses her forehead and relaxes. Rukia however is extremely confused at all the exciting feelings racing around in her heart. She knows she is enjoying being here in his arms, but it also feels like something is missing. When he kisses her head and she feels her heart race more, she realizes what it is that's missing. They are not touching each other enough. Rukia lets her hands roam up and down his back, and then she feels the waistline of his pants. She slips her fingers underneath and lets her hands roam the lowest part of his back. Ichigo pulls away from her all of a sudden, breathing kind of hard.

"Ichigo, what's wrong?" Rukia asks him with concern. Ichigo shakes his head.

"I'll keep holding you, but you have got to stop that Rukia, or else I'm just going to keep thinking about going further." Ichigo tells her honestly.

"What do you mean by further?" Rukia asks, "Because I too get the sensation that we could be doing something else that would feel even better than just holding each other." Rukia says, her eyes sparkling. She notices that his face has become completely red.

"You really don't know?" Ichigo asks her in disbelief.

"No, I've never been in a relationship before , Ichigo." Rukia tells him honestly.

"I've never been in a relationship outside of you either, but I still know what it means to go further." Ichigo says in a strained voice.

"Tell me then." Rukia says looking up at him for an explanation. Ichigo looks away from her but answers her anyways.

"I feel like I want to take off all of our clothes and then kiss and touch you until we're making love." Ichigo says even though he's thoroughly red and embarrassed. He is still unable to look Rukia in the eyes. He's worried she'll look completely disgusted. When she answers him though, his eyes swiftly turn to look at hers.

"I think I'd really like that. Making love with you? That sounds like everything I've ever wanted and couldn't put into words." Rukia says in a confident voice. Ichigo's mouth falls open in surprise. "Are you worried you won't like it, Ichigo?" Rukia asks him quietly.

"No, that's not it at all. I was worried you'd tell me to stay far away from you after I admitted what I wanted to do." Ichigo confides. His eyes widen as big as dinner plates when she reaches for the bottom of her dress and lifts it over her head to reveal her bra and panties. She turns around.

"Unsnap this for me please." Rukia asks. Ichigo fumbles with the bra but after several uncomfortable moments he finally is able to get the thing unsnapped. Ichigo stands there unable to move and he is definitely unable to move when she pulls her panties down and turns around to face him in all her glorious perfection. Rukia seems aware that he's not thinking clearly, so when she starts pulling down his pants, Ichigo feels the full force of desire hit him hard. The moment she removes the last of his clothing, he bends his head down to kiss her and wraps his arms around her. He sits on the bed and pulls her into his lap. He kisses her and runs his hands up and down her smooth soft skin.

"Ichigo!" Ichigo sits straight up in bed as Rukia calls to him. She's immediately yelps as the blanket comes off of her body, which Ichigo had exposed last night in order to warm her. Ichigo's mouth falls open at the view and Rukia smacks his face quickly pulls her robe up to cover everything.

"What?" Ichigo asks, rubbing his cheek where she slapped him and then his sleepy eyes.

"You were sleep talking." Rukia says in a weird voice. Ichigo pulls his hand away from his eyes as realization dawns. Reality had ended with him holding her in his arms to fall asleep. Everything else had been a dream. If that was true what in the hell had he said in his sleep? Ichigo forces himself to look her in the eyes.

"What did I say?" Ichigo asks as his heart thumps loudly in his chest. Rukia blushes furiously.

"I'm not sure I can repeat it." Rukia says in mortification.

"I won't know what I said unless you tell me." Ichigo says. Rukia keeps shaking her head. She tries to climb out of bed, when she lifts the blanket up, she sees Ichigo's only got boxers on. She loses her balance and falls on the floor where Ichigo peers over at her with amusement in his eyes.

"You were talking about doing things with me." Rukia says loudly then. The amusement leaves his eyes instantly as he raises an eyebrow.

"Like taking you to Karakura Town's spring festival?" Ichigo inquires innocently. He has to concentrate on not laughing when she rolls her eyes upward.

"No it was nothing like that." Rukia answers standing, and stepping away from him, feeling hurt. Why was it that the nicest thing he'd ever said to her had to be in his sleep? She turns away from him and towards the closet before she realizes precisely how to get him back.

"Then what was it?" Ichigo asks, still worried about what might have come out of his mouth as he dreamed. He's shocked when Rukia climbs up into the closet and shuts the door in response. Ichigo gets out of bed and walks over to the closet. He taps on the door.

"Rukia?" No answer. He knows she heard him.

"I don't feel well enough to go to school with you today, Ichigo, I'm staying here." Rukia responds through the door. Ichigo glares at the closet door.

"I won't be able to go to school either, unless you open the door so I can get out my clothes." Ichigo responds. Once again, Rukia doesn't answer, but he slides it open anyways.

"Rukia." Ichigo tries to get her to respond, but she doesn't. He starts to wonder if she is truly okay. Maybe he should stay to take care of her. Plus if his old man barges in here for any reason while he isn't here, and discovers her...Ichigo can't let that thought go any further. Rukia hears him let out a long sigh before he mutters that he can't go to school if she's not well. Rukia has to struggle not to laugh as he pulls her out of the closet and lays her back in his bed.

He's sitting at his desk, watching her rest when he hears his sister calling his name and getting closer and closer to his door. Ichigo panics and jumps back into bed with Rukia, for once he's glad she's so tiny, he's able to curl his body around her, and pull the blanket up so that it looks like there's only one person in his bed. Just as he had pulled the blanket over Rukia's head, Yuzu enters without knocking. Rukia grins under the covers. Since he's spooning her she wiggles her rear around a little bit and lets out a breathless sigh. Ichigo of course hears it, but his sister doesn't.

"Ichigo, you're going to be late for school if you don't hurry." Yuzu says as she waves a spatula around in her hand.

"I don't feel good today. I'm staying in bed today." Ichigo responds through gritted teeth as Rukia's fingers start to caress the arm he threw around her. That was a bald faced lie. He was feeling incredibly good as she touched him, but he couldn't let his sister discover the actual situation.

"Then I will make you some warm miso soup!" Yuzu declares, backing out of his doorway and shutting the door. Ichigo grabs Rukia's hand off of his arm and whips the cover off of her face.

"What are you a faker?" Ichigo asks, narrowing his eyes at her. Rukia looks up at him with a confused look.

"Just because I don't feel well doesn't mean I'm not going to retaliate for you not telling me what you were dreaming about!" Rukia says turning away and closing her eyes. Ichigo sighs. It's not a topic he's exactly comfortable discussing. He'd like to avoid it if at all possible.

"Why do you want to know what I was dreaming about so badly for? Was what I said, really all that bad?" Ichigo asks her, wondering exactly what he had spoken aloud.

"I want to know because I'm curious! I've never heard you speak in that tone before, or say those kinds of things before!" Rukia responds, turning back around to look at him. He's blushing. She stares at him.

"What kinds of things did I say?" Ichigo whispers.

"Things that made my heart race," Rukia whispers back, watching his face turn redder.

"Really?" Ichigo asks, disbelieving. Rukia nods.

"So what were you dreaming about?" Rukia asks again. Ichigo groans.

"Stop worrying about that and relax. We're here all day." Ichigo says, trying to dissuade her from her question, but she wants to know.

"So you're really willing to spend your whole day listening to me ask you what your dream was about?" Rukia asks him in a serious voice. Ichigo groans.

"I dreamed that you and I were being intimate! There! You happy now?" Ichigo says as he turns his back on her. He can feel the heat radiating off of his face in embarrassment. Now he's told her and he has to spend the whole day with her on top of it. Ichigo groans again.

"Really?" Rukia asks, smiling at his back, feeling heat creeping up to her own cheeks as well.

"Why's that so unbelievable?" Ichigo grumbles with a squeak in his voice, belying his feelings.

"Because I've been dreaming of you in that way for ages. Not every night or anything, but since I started staying in your closet I've had those kind of dreams about you." Rukia says rather cheerfully, ignoring Ichigo's responsive groan.

"If you keep talking, I'm not sure I'll be able to look you in the face ever again." Ichigo mumbles, angry that the heat in his face hasn't died down at all. He flinches in surprise when he feels Rukia's arm slide around him.

"I have a better idea, why not make our dreams come true, I think that would be the best medicine for me" Rukia says in a soft purr. Ichigo's nervous heavy breathing is the only answer she gets. Rukia smiles at his shyness. She lifts up his shirt and puts her hand on his side, smiling at the way his skin instinctively flexes and responds to her touch.

"Rukia," Ichigo whispers, still not looking at her.

"If you want me to stop, just say stop." Rukia whispers back. Ichigo closes his eyes tightly for an instant, loving the feel of her touch.

"Rukia…" Ichigo mumbles.

"Yeah, Ichigo?" Rukia asks, pausing in mid-caress.

"Don't stop." Ichigo breathes as he finally turns around and takes her into his arms.

(much much later)

She didn't leave his bed until the next morning. All in all it was the best sick day of his and her life.


	3. Dreaming Of The Past, Dreaming of Rukia

Ichigo mumbles, and turns in his sleep. He's been dreaming of the past, every night, ever since Yoruichi made one thoughtless comment to him.

She came trotting up to him in cat form, immediately after he finished off a weakling hollow. She had greeted him, and looked up at him, asking him if he remembered their bath together. Ichigo had yelled for her to shut up, and Yoruichi teased him further by asking him if he missed it and if he wanted to do it again.

Ichigo had told the cat as icily as he could manage that thanks but no thanks.

Yoruichi had turned around and started strutting away, but not before she called out that comment.

"Oh, I get it, you don't want to bathe with anybody other than Kuchiki-san!" Yoruichi had disappeared after that comment, leaving Ichigo all alone and red faced.

Ever since that day, his dreams have been plaguing him. He turns in his sleep again. No matter how many mental walls he builds to keep his heart safe while he's awake, they all come crashing down in his sleep, or when he's with her. When he sleeps lately, those two go hand in hand. Every night, dreaming about Rukia.

He dreamed back to when they first met and when she had first shown him the barest of considerations, and every night he dreamed of the moment she pierced his heart with the blade of her soul. The moment they became so connected he couldn't explain it to anybody. He certainly didn't have to explain it to her, she felt it as well as he did. His survival and her survival became one and the same. Their wills the same, their resolve the same...their unspoken love, the same.

Sure he'd been asked in the past, particularly by Byakuya. "Why do you repeatedly try to save Rukia?" He had asked. That was a little too personal a question, coming from the guy who at the time was determined to kill her. Ichigo should have told him the truth, but instead he had put up another protective wall for the girl's ass of a brother.

"Let me ask you, aren't you Rukia's brother? Why don't you save her?!" It's really the only question that had mattered as far as Ichigo was concerned. He sure as hell wasn't going to tell anybody else his feelings if he couldn't even say them to Rukia, that wouldn't be very respectful of her.

Instead Ichigo fought, got torn up, and informed her brother that the power in his hand was gained for her sake. He had dreamed of this a lot lately too. He shifts in his sleep as one of his least favorite dreams becomes his mental focus. That day. The day she ran away without so much as a word. That had pissed Ichigo off so much, since they had already established that they were a team.

She had become his irreplaceable partner the day she witnessed his fight against the grande fisher. She knew that, she had to. She left by herself anyways, at the very least she left a note, not to explain her disappearance, but to try to protect him one last time.

Ichigo remembers the way his heart had jumped when he realized she was probably in trouble. Urahara had shown up in his window, offering to help. Ichigo's dream goes from realizing she's gone, to confronting Renji as he's about to assault Ishida. Ichigo's eyes quickly go to Rukia to make sure she's okay.

She's alive, that's got to count for something, but she has a cut on her face, and she looks like she's in pain. Ichigo feels his heart tighten like it's being squeezed. Nobody gets away with hurting Rukia! Ichigo remembers thinking that just before he introduces himself to Renji.

Ichigo remembers the surprise of at first being overwhelmed by Renji, until the ugly bastard starts to talk shit. "You couldn't put a scratch on a real Shinigami like me!" Renji had said, just before Ichigo slashed his chin. Ichigo remembers feeling like there's a spark inside him that's trying to become a fire.

Renji is able to cut him quite seriously, but then something strange happens. Ichigo feels his whole body calm down and the power start to slowly rise. His wounds are starting to feel like they aren't there and Ichigo is aware that Rukia is holding Renji back, he can hear her all inside his brain, screaming for him to run.

"Ha! Like I could ever run and just leave you here!" Ichigo thinks to himself as he feels a huge surge of power in his arms, legs, chest, it runs through his whole body before the blue string on the zanpakutou he's holding snaps.

All of Ichigo's focus is now on Renji, except that in this dream, Ichigo is watching from the sidelines, standing next to Rukia, unnoticed by her because her attention is on the fight of the past. Ichigo knows what's going to happen next since it's not the first time he's dreamed it.

Rukia breathes his name in a relieved voice now that he's got the upper hand in the fight. This has surprised Ichigo since the first time he dreamed it. He hadn't even realized it during that fight, that she was looking at Ichigo, praying for Ichigo's safety, wanting Ichigo to win.

Over her childhood best friend. What does that mean? Ichigo turns again as he dreams the part where he's about to finish off Renji and Byakuya intervenes. The pain that he felt that night from his wounds is just as horrible as in his dreams. The rain feels just as heartless, and Rukia's eyes look just as sad as they did that night.

Ichigo remembers the tears welling up in her eyes as she begs him not to follow her, or she'll never forgive him. Yeah right, (he scoffs mentally) like she could ever hold a grudge against him.

Ichigo then dreams of the day Hanatarou told him about what Rukia had said to him about the real world. Ichigo remembers how determined he was to save her after hearing what Rukia had to say about the real world, but mostly it was what she had said about him.

Somehow she has it in her head that she's supposed to protect him. He thinks she's got it backwards. It was his job to protect her, and had he not gotten in her way that first day, she would have likely destroyed the hollow, kept an eye on him and not been arrested for transferring her powers to him.

It wasn't her fault that he'd reacted like a reject upon hearing the hollows were hunting him. Ichigo dreams about the moment he walks away from Hanatarou and vows to his heart and soul that he won't let Rukia die. Then his dream fades from that and into his second confrontation with Renji when they were yelling at each other, over Rukia.

Renji is screaming that it's Ichigo's fault she's going be executed and Ichigo yells that he knows and that's why he's going to save her damn it! Ichigo can feel his heart twist at the simple memory of their verbal fight. Then, that fades.

All of a sudden he's flying towards her on the bridge, and she's looking up at him wide eyed. Ichigo lands and bows to her, but before he can give her all of his attention, he has to check on Hanatarou, an action that puzzles everyone watching. Ichigo needs a moment to calm his nerves before he can speak to her.

He walks over to Rukia who has her back to him now that he walked past her, nearly ignoring her. She looks up at him waiting for him to speak. "Rukia, I'm here to save you."

Ichigo glances back at her brother before realizing she hasn't spoken. He looks at her to see she's about ready to cry, and he can't understand it. "What's with that face? I'm here to save you, act a little happier!" Ichigo says looking at her as she reminds him that she forbade him from coming, that she'd never forgive it. She contradicts those words by choking out.

"You're all torn up! Idiot!" She says, nearly bawling at his injuries. Ishigo glances at Ganju.

"Damn straight. So, I'll let you yell at me as much as you want to later, after I defeat him." Ichigo says, pointing at her brother. Rukia looks up at him eyes wide.

"Ichigo." Rukia says and Ichigo glares at her.

"You're not going to tell me to back down are you? Don't make me laugh. I'll never do that."

"But-"

"It wasn't easy coming all this way you know. It doesn't matter if you say you want to face the death penalty. I'm going to save you, even if I have to drag you away! From this point on, your opinions are rejected!" Ichigo says loudly, voice rising at her audacity. How is it she can stand there glaring at him when he's here to save her? She has a surprised look of disbelief on her face.

"You're ignoring all of the rescue's opinions?" She asks, shocked. Ichigo doesn't hesitate.

"Shut up! You're being saved aren't you? You should stand the corner trembling and cry save me, save me!" Ichigo says getting in her face.

"Save me, my butt! I do _not_ tremble!" Rukia replies, glaring at him. Ichigo sticks his tongue out at her, and all Rukia can do is sigh at his inability to change. "You're the same as always, never listening to a word I say." She sighs, but she does look happy to see him.

"Of course! Everything you ever say is out of worry for me, at a time like this, worry about yourself!" Ichigo says, glancing back at her brother.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says, urgently.

"Don't worry! I may not look it, but I've gotten a lot stronger since we've been apart. I won't die." Ichigo says, throwing her a small confident grin.

The dream begins to fade to the second time in Soul Society that he shows up to save her, right before she's about to be incinerated. Once again she wears a look of surprise at seeing him and once again, she yells at him for not understanding that his desire to save her is futile. She demands to know why he's shown up again, since he can never defeat her brother. She tells him she's prepared herself, and for him to go away. Ichigo just gives her a long look.

He's about to reply but the fire bird he's holding back wants a second go at Rukia, and by default, him. Ichigo remembers flying towards the bird, about to unleash the full fury of Getsuga Tenshou on the thing, but some ropes fly up stopping the bird.

Ichigo watches as the bird is blasted to bits and he heads back to Rukia. He lands on top of the Soukyoku's cross as he starts to twirl his blade magnificently. Rukia is glancing up, wondering and then asking what he's planning on doing.

"What does it look like? I'm going to smash this execution platform!" Ichigo informs her. Rukia's screaming and Ichigo doesn't listen.

"Ichigo! Don't be reckless! Listen to me the cross of the Soukyoku is…" She's cut off.

"Shut up and watch me." Ichigo's reiatsu surrounds her and she hears an explosion, even though she doesn't feel it, and he grabs her up before she tumbles to the ground.

He can't help but to chastise her. "You freakin talk to much with telling me not to save you and to go away. I thought I already told you. All your opinions are rejected. This is the second time, and this time, I'm here to save you, Rukia!" Ichigo says, resolve laced around each word. Her eyes widen, and then soften.

"I won't thank you, idiot!" She says practically bawling.

"Sure," Ichigo says, feeling a smile come on.

Ichigo sits straight up in bed. The same dreams, over and over and over again. He glances at the closet and then at the ground. He was always content to just be close to her, and now? Ichigo groans. Every night he dreams of her. Every time he's in her presence, he's more aware of her than anyone else. She's the only person with the ability to make his inner world shine from the sun she brings…forcefully.

She knows his feelings, so why is it starting to feel like he's expected to say everything out loud? Every time he wakes up Ichigo tells himself that he doesn't need to verbalize his feelings, and every night he dreams of her. Beautiful, proud, levelheaded, and center of his soul, Rukia.

Ichigo reminds himself every morning that he doesn't need to say a thing. Just because other people want them to say it, doesn't mean it needs to be said. She knows I love her, just like I know she loves me.

It's only now that he's come to his complete senses that he can wake up, stand up. But he still can't wait until it's time to dream tonight. It's the only senseless thought that he can't leave behind him every morning as he wakes up.


	4. Her Bad Dream

Rukia groans as she has that terrible dream again. The one where she's acting like a girly girl. It starts with her spending an hour applying some godawful make-up with other girls. Then the most horrible sounding giggle comes out of her mouth. This is nothing like the act she puts on at Ichigo's school, it's not an act in her dream.

A drip of sweat rolls down her face as she keeps dreaming. Her dream gets worse, as Rukia is trying out for the cheerleading squad. Cheering for a bunch of sweaty boys seemed to be of the utmost importance to dream Rukia, but Rukia flips over in her sleep smacking the closet from the inside with her hand, effectively waking Ichigo up out of his sleep and compelling him to get out of bed.

He heard the noise against the closet door. He sits up and sighs as he rubs his head. He glances at the closet before pulling the cover off of his body and standing up. He doesn't know what's going on, and so he quietly but quickly steps up to the closet and opens the door. Rukia's quietly groaning in displeasure. Ichigo stares at her for a minute, before she loudly whines.

"Not nail polish, no!" Rukia mutters in a panicked voice. "Get away from me with those bright colors! I don't have time to worry about some girly nails...that includes fake nails!" Rukia says in a louder voice. Ichigo grins. He watches as her head starts turning side to side like she's turning someone down.

"Rukia?" Ichigo whispers only to get told off...

"What in the hell kind of shoes are those? Those do not look like very productive shoes at all, how are you supposed to run with those heels?" Rukia snaps in his face.

Ichigo can't help it, he laughs a little. Her next statement brings his mouth into a surprised O.

"You actually think Ichigo would like those on me? Why in God's name would he like something so stupid?" She mutters.

"It would be easier to kiss you," Ichigo whispers, smiling at the thought of Rukia in heels.

"What do you girls think you're doing, hey where are you dragging me?" Rukia moans. Ichigo grins when she sucks in her breath in horror. "That sounds ominous, what is a facial?" She asks in a confused voice, "wait I don't trust you girls, I just want to be with Ichigo, he doesn't try to change me."

Rukia says it so softly, Ichigo leans his face in really close to hear it all. Ichigo backs away from her and silently shuts the door. He grins thinking of the perfect thing to say to her in the morning. Ichigo, still smiling goes back to bed and lays down, able to sleep now that Rukia has quieted down.

The next morning, Ichigo wakes up but Rukia's not in the closet. He yawns and gets up to head for the bathroom. He's about to walk in, since the door is open, but he sees Rukia looking at her face in the mirror, turning her head slowly and looking very relieved.

Ichigo smiles as he remembers her dream talk, and when she notices him, she looks surprised as she looks up to meet his gaze. She thinks he looks amused, and so she smiles a small smile. Ichigo's eyes look so warm and loving.

"We should go shopping after school and buy you some heels so that you don't have to strain your neck so much to look at me." He says in a low and amused voice. Her eyes widen and she starts to glare at him, but that changes into a smirk.

"You must want to kiss me really bad," She says giving him the identical mocking smirk that he was wearing. Ichigo's eyes widen and he blushes as he looks away as Rukia breezes by him and heads back for the bedroom. She closes the door and crosses her arms smugly.

Ichigo is still standing in the bathroom looking embarrassed. At what point did she wake up?

Rukia never woke up. Every time she has a dream that gets her to talk out loud, Ichigo always comes to check on her, and he usually talks to her. The moment he talks, he appears in her dream, and she can always hear him, and always remember it.

Now she blushes as she thinks of the times in the past that he appeared in her dreams and said something sweet to make her feel better. She's grinning happily when Ichigo enters the bedroom and looks at her with a questioning gaze.

"Rukia?" He says, just looking at her. She smiles at him.

"If you're willing to waste your money on them, then I think I might like a pair of heels." Rukia says, turning away from him and jumping out the window. Ichigo blushes as he smiles at her retreating figure.

"It won't be a waste of money," he whispers, staring at her until she's out of view.


	5. The Wrong Girl

Ichigo's POV

Rukia was walking home with Tatsuki and Inoue since I pissed her off at school today. I follow her from behind at a far distance, since the moment she parted from those girls I was going to grab her and yell at her for holding a grudge, and hope for her to punch me in the stomach so that everything will be better and she can stop being mad.

I'm so busy thinking that I don't notice some guys are leering at the three girls, but afraid to step near them due to Tatsuki's reputation as a girl that will injure you so bad you're likely to land in the hospital.

Inoue points to an ice cream shop but Rukia politely shakes her head. Tatsuki and Inoue head into the ice cream shop with out her, and I quicken my step so that I can finally confront the infuriating girl for once and for all.

I stop in shock and my eyes widen as four boys fan out in a circle around Rukia, as they try to push her into an alley. I can only see red. I'm going to injure them so badly. Rukia has disappeared from my view as she disappears into the alley with the boys.

I wish I hadn't followed at such a far distance now, as I can't shunpo in my real body. Just as I'm tearing around the corner to beat the living shit out of the soon to be real sorry assholes I practically mow Rukia down. I have to grab her to keep her from falling back and smacking her head on the pavement.

Littered all around her are the beaten and bruised bodies of the four guys who'd tried to intimidate her. Now who am I supposed to beat up? I'm still seeing red. I grab the girl in front of me.

"Are you okay? You're not hurt anywhere are you?" I ask as I shake her just a tad bit too hard.

"Ichigo! I'm fine, I've told you before that I can take care of myself!" Rukia says before walking away with her diginity. All I can do is stare at her. What a girl. One of the assholes groans and tries to stand. I kick him in the side.

"Shut up! If you ever try that shit again, I'll kill you myself! Don't you forget, that's my girl!" I hiss before I follow Rukia, still staying back but following at a much closer distance than before.

She doesn't look back to see the adoration all over my face, which is good because if she did see it, she'd never let me live it down.

Rukia's POV

I know Ichigo likes walking me home, but he didn't have to snap at me to hurry up the way he did and he definitely didn't need to call me "half pint."

I told him I would walk with the girls if he was just going to insult me, and I couldn't help but grin when he sulked quietly and followed me from behind, he was quite a ways away but I can sense his reiatsu from miles away, so I know he's there.

I start to feel a bit bad about the way he's walking by himself, and so when the girls decide to get ice cream, I turn them down so I can walk the rest of the way with Ichigo. I was so focused on him and his reiatsu that I didn't notice the normal human boys that were suddenly surrounding me. I raised my eyebrow.

"What do you want?" I ask sharply, showing that I'm not frightened.

"C'mon baby, don't be like that, I think you're real pretty and I'd like to get closer to you." The boy says. The other boys laugh and I wonder what's so funny.

I also realize that I'm going to have to kick their asses as they appear to be trying to force me into an alley. I let them force me because it wouldn't be great if the whole world saw me kicking their puny asses single handedly.

I have forgotten about Ichigo as I prepare to teach these disgusting boys a lesson. It doesn't take long, 2 punches and a mid-air split kick is all it takes to drop all four of them.

I'm just dusting off my skirt when Ichigo barrels around the corner nearly knocking me to my ass, he looks ready to kill even as he grabs me and keeps me from falling. He looks at me with fear in his eyes. He asks if I'm okay, if I'm hurt. I smirk at him.

"Ichigo! I'm fine, I've told you before that I can take care of myself!" I yell as I turn around and walk away with an extra swing in my step. I hear one of the boys I beat up groan and then yelp as Ichigo does something to him. I can hear Ichigo's voice threatening the kid, but I can't hear what he says.

He follows me, a lot closer this time. I smile the whole way home. Once we get home, I'll let him know I forgive him, since he isn't a complete ass all the time.

Tatsuki & Inoue's POV

It's nice having Rukia walk with us, I wish she'd walk with us more often, Inoue thinks in her mind. Tatsuki grins as they talk about their day. She likes Rukia too, but she always wonders exactly what her friend Ichigo's feelings are for the petite dark haired girl he hangs around so much these days.

We laugh as we walk, it's so great to be out of school. Tatsuki catches Inoue's eyes and smiles at her. Inoue smiles back and she stops at the ice cream shop she always stops at when it's warm outside.

She looks so happy, Tatsuki of course, agrees to go in and get some ice cream with her.

Rukia decides to head home, while Inoue and Tatsuki head into the shop to order ice cream. Inoue is staring at the menu trying to decide when Tatsuki sees some unsavory boys head in Kuchiki's direction.

By the time Tatsuki makes it to the door with Inoue right behind her, Ichigo has already run by the door.

We hear screaming and grunting.

Inoue and Tatsuki hurry and dash over to peek around the corner and their mouths gape open when they see all the boys on the ground.

Tatsuki nods her head, impressed. She notices that she no longer has to wonder what Ichigo sees in the girl, she's amazing.

Tatsuki gives her much respect indeed.

"Kuchiki-san sure is amazing," Inoue says softly. Tatsuki looks at her and grins.

"Not bad at all." She says with a whisper.

They both watch as Ichigo threatens the first boy to move and then trails after her like a puppy.

The boys with the bad intentions POV

We all see the cute girls pass by. As much as we'd like to get our hands on two of them, the third is a black belt and as strong as a guy, capable of kicking all of our asses at the same time without breaking a drop of sweat.

We all let our eyes follow them, and I exchange a glance with my buddies when the short cute petite one separates from the other two, including the known ass kicker. We grin as we quickly catch up to the petite girl and surround her, but she isn't normal.

She doesn't look the slightest bit afraid, and she willingly goes into the alley. Next thing we know a foot or fist is flying at our faces.

We don't remember anything after that, but we all agreed we will definitely never follow another girl with bad intentions ever again in our lives!


	6. How She Got Ichigo To Get Her A Rabbit

How She Got A Rabbit…AWWWWWW

Ichigo tries not to stare at Rukia during lunch period, but it's difficult when Keigo keeps trying to flirt with her. Ichigo has already positioned himself next to her and he starts to glare at Keigo as he doesn't shut up. Ichigo clenches his fists as Keigo talks.

"Kuchiki-san, I would do anything to be able to spend time in your company!" Keigo croons in a sick voice, causing Ichigo to want to swear loudly.

Ichigo bites his tongue and turns his head sharply when Rukia seems to be considering his question. Ichigo gives an even angrier glare to Keigo, who has just now noticed Ichigo's glaring. He looks a bit scared of Ichigo, but he still brings his gaze back to Rukia, and he's suddenly hopeful.

"Anything?" Rukia echoes, causing Ichigo to jerk his eyes towards her. Just as Keigo is about to respond, Ichigo grabs her arm and yanks her away, not caring what anybody else thinks anymore.

"What are you thinking!" Ichigo hisses angrily at her. Rukia smiles.

"I was thinking it would be nice to have a friend that owns a rabbit. I was going to tell him I would hang out with him if he got one." Rukia explains with an excited smile.

"You're not hanging out with Keigo at his house." Ichigo says firmly. Rukia looks confused. _It's for his sake as well as yours_, Ichigo thinks.

"But I want to if he gets a rabbit!" She objects. Ichigo rolls his eyes and sighs heavily. He doesn't let her near Keigo for the rest of the day. After school, he drags her by her arm to the local pet shop. She looks at him so happily when the rabbits are in view.

Rukia squeals (yes, squeals) and Ichigo rolls his eyes. He can't completely stop himself from grinning a little bit though. She's so happy, and Ichigo quietly enjoys watching her go nuts over the rabbits.

"I want to take one home." Rukia says in a whisper as she rubs a black rabbit's long ears. Ichigo scratches his head and speaks very quietly.

"The day you promise me that you're here with me to stay, I'll get you a rabbit." Ichigo blushes and looks away. Rukia's mouth falls open as she stares at the cute rabbits and then at her companion.

"There's something I want more than a cute rabbit." Rukia says in a whisper as she looks up at him, with her eyes longing.

"What?" Ichigo asks, surprised there's something she wants more than a rabbit. She doesn't answer, she just stares into his eyes, and he feels his face turning red. "Don't be stupid, Rukia. That's been yours for the longest time." Ichigo says, refusing to meet her eyes. Rukia grins.

"So can we get that bunny rabbit right there?" She asks as she points at a cute black and white rabbit. Ichigo sighs.

"I'm only getting that for you if you promise me not to accept any of Keigo's advances anymore." Ichigo says firmly. Her beaming smile disturbs him a little bit.

"Promise!" She says excitedly with a laugh. "I'm getting a chappy! I'm going to name you Love! That way I can tell all my friends that Ichigo gave me Love!" Rukia says as she runs off to find the sales woman. Ichigo chases after her. (He suddenly realizes he's never chased after any girl he's not related to, besides her)

"Don't you dare tell people that, Rukia!" Ichigo is practically shouting, and people are staring.

"Why shouldn't I tell them the truth?" She asks with her hands on her hips.

"Some things should just stay between you and me. A lot of things, in fact." Ichigo says stubbornly. Rukia smiles.

"I'm glad you're getting me a rabbit, and it's wishful thinking if you think I'm going to keep it secret! Excuse me!" Rukia gets the sales woman's attention and the lady smiles at them cutely. "He said he was going to get me a rabbit, and I have one all picked out!" Rukia impatiently motions for the lady to follow. The lady is quite taken in by Rukia's excitement and she quickly follows the petite girl before winking at Ichigo.

"Aww that's sweet, you're getting your girlfriend a rabbit." She says it with a smile. He says nothing, his face is bright red though. Rukia's too ecstatic to be embarrassed. She has started hopping like a small child the moment she points out which rabbit she wants to the lady.

"Hi Love, I'm your new mommy, and this," she makes a gesture towards Ichigo, "is your new daddy!" Rukia's using the same kind of voice people use with small toddlers. Ichigo glances around to see just how many people are paying attention to her. He groans and stares at the floor when he realizes, it's pretty much everyone in hearing distance.

Ichigo isn't exactly happy about the rodent, but he's glad to see she's happy.

Ichigo actually finishes his homework at a decent hour, since no hollows show today, and Rukia's way too preoccupied by her precious new pet. He ends up spending a lot of time watching her play with the rabbit once he finishes his homework. He glares when she sets the bunny on his lap for a minute. The rabbit immediately hops out of his lap and Rukia keeps playing with it.

Rukia can't wait to tell the other girls how she got Ichigo to get her the rabbit.

The next day...

"Ichigo got me a rabbit!" Rukia gushes to the girls while Ichigo's out of hearing distance. He's approaching closer with his buddies. Rukia watches him out of the corner of her eye, and Tatsuki raises an eyebrow.

"How did you manage to get him to do that?" Tatsuki asks, and Inoue nods her head in agreement. Ichigo's close enough to hear them now.

"It was easy! In exchange for the cute rabbit, I just had to promise not to go out with Keigo! Ever." Rukia exclaims. All the girls swing their gaze to Ichigo, who heard Rukia's last comment. His face turns completely white before it turns blazing red. His friends heard too, and it's a mixture between groans and laughter. Keigo is shocked speechless.

"Awwww!" comes from the girls and the guys all start laughing at Ichigo.

"What did you name it, Kuchiki-san?" Inoue asks. Rukia grins at her.

"Love." Rukia answers. Inoue smiles.

"Why did you choose that name?" Tatsuki asks with a chuckle as Ichigo hits a couple of his friends in order to get next to Rukia.

"Because he-" Rukia's mouth is covered by Ichigo's hand and he picks her up with the other arm.

"Rukia and I have to talk." Ichigo says in a low voice to the others. He doesn't meet any of their eyes directly. He runs out of their sight with her in one arm. He puts her down and crosses his arms.

"Why?" He practically whispers, he's so embarrassed. Rukia feels a little bit bad. She knows how important his image is to him.

"Because I'm happy, and it's all because of you that I am." Rukia says with a grin. Ichigo feels his frustration melt away. "Besides, this is the easiest way to keep other guys from inviting me out," Rukia adds softly. Ichigo meets her eyes and sighs. As usual, she has to win every argument.

"You've had your fun, please stop torturing me." Ichigo says quietly. Rukia smiles and nods. After school he hurries to catch up with Rukia, who is hanging out with the girls. She sees him out of the corner of her eyes, and by the time he catches up to her, he can only hear the end of her story.

"And that's how I convinced Ichigo to get me a rabbit." Rukia finishes. All of the girls stare at him and Ichigo refuses to meet any of their eyes.

"Come on, Rukia." Ichigo says a little grouchily, assuming the worst yet hoping for the best. Rukia nods with a sickeningly sweet (fake) smile.

"I've got to go! See you tomorrow!" Rukia says, waving to the girls as she falls into step next to Ichigo. She looks up to see him blushing. He doesn't ask her what she told them though. She touches his arm, and he meets her piercing eyes. "Thanks for Love, Ichigo." Rukia says, smiling. Ichigo nods awkwardly.

"You're welcome, Rukia." Ichigo says, calming down. He decides not to think about what she might have told the girls. Tatsuki and Inoue watch Rukia and Ichigo leave. Tatsuki trades a surprised look with Inoue as they watch how the two walk very close together.

"He was actually jealous that she was considering hanging out with Keigo! I used to think that I'd never see the day Kurosaki Ichigo was brought to heel by a giggly girl!" Tatsuki says, her eyes sparkling.

"Yeah." Inoue says, wishing he got jealous over her like that. "She's lucky." Inoue whispers sadly.

"I wonder how far they've gone." Chizuru says, grinning at their retreating backs. "Third base? All the way?"

"I don't want to know." Tatsuki says. A couple of their friends rush over, and Tatsuki repeats Rukia's story... "and that's how she got Kurosaki to buy her a rabbit!"

"AWWWWW!" replies the crowd.

(Somewhere in Karakura Town as Ichigo walks with Rukia, he sneezes several times in a row)


	7. Something New

Something New

Rukia stretches in Ichigo's room, as she's all alone and smiles. She really feels like she's got the hang of the human world.

At least Ichigo's day to day life, she no longer has a million questions about everything, nor does she understand quite how everything works. She doesn't think Ichigo's explanation for how the microwave works will ever satisfy her, she still doesn't get it.

She hasn't had anything majorly stump her in over a week now, which has her feeling a bit glorious, like she's accomplished something special. She hums happily.

"I wonder what strange human custom will shock me next." She asks herself out loud. She turns around to see Ichigo leaning up against his own door frame, looking at her with a scowl, but with amusement showing in his eyes. He only focuses on her like this.

"What are you doing?" he asks her, noticing her superior smug and confident attitude.

"I was just congratulating myself on finally getting hang of the human world." Rukia explains, smiling proudly. She sees when he rolls his eyes, and so she walks past him sweeping his feet out from under his body. He flies to the floor and lands on his butt with an oomph, and she flounces away from him to go to the kitchen.

"What in the hell was that, Rukia?" He chases after her. She grins. She would never tell him, but she likes it when he follows her around. She likes it that he does it all the time too. She's so busy being happy, she's almost caught enjoying herself. She feels his large hands on her shoulders, spinning her around. She barely gets a scowl on her face in time.

"Don't grab me like that!" Rukia shouts as she punches him in the gut very hard. He doubles over in pain and is nose to nose with her. He looks directly into her eyes and he can see the laughter in her eyes. He ignores the pain and tackles her to the ground. Rukia lets out a shriek and a tiny giggle. Why does her body feel like there is an electrical charge running through it? Her heart pounds wildly.

"Why do you have to be so difficult?" Ichigo asks her seriously, once he's got her on her back, holding each hand separately above her head, holding her body locked with his own legs. His legs press tightly against hers, and Rukia likes the feeling of their bodies touching, even if there are some annoying clothes in the way.

His face isn't that far away from hers and she really doesn't have a choice but to look up at him as he pins her in this position. Very undignified. She attempts a struggle, but he seems prepared for it. He smirks at her. She raises her eyebrow as if silently asking if that was a challenge. Pride overcomes the way her body is reacting to him. She's extremely glad he seems unaware of his effect on her.

"Help me! He's an animal! No Ichigo! We can't have sex here!" Rukia loudly shrieks. Ichigo's eyes widen in horror as his father dashes into the room and looks at Ichigo holding Rukia in a very compromising position. Ichigo looks mortified, and Rukia tries not to laugh out loud. She can't stop herself from letting out a smirk. Thankfully, Isshin doesn't notice that.

"Ichigo! What are you doing to my precious third daughter! Just because she's not your blood sister doesn't mean you can have your way with her!" Isshin yells yanking Ichigo up by the back of his collar and throwing him into the wall. Ichigo crumbles to the floor, in a temporary daze. Isshin helps Rukia up and checks her face carefully.

"Are you alright, Rukia-chan?" He asks as she forces her eyes quiver.

"Sometimes he can be very scary," Rukia replies, letting her voice crack as though she's about to cry. Isshin is about to comfort her some more when Ichigo recovers and jumps up. He runs over to Rukia, yanking her arm and dragging her out of the house as Rukia shrieks. Once they're outside, Rukia smiles at him prettily. He pins her with glare that shows his annoyance.

"Did you have to involve my dad?" He complains as he lets go of her arm. Rukia looks up at him, happiness shining in her eyes.

"You laughed at me didn't you? Acted like I don't know anything about the living world." Rukia jams her index finger into his chest. "I may not be an expert on the living world, but I do know your family, and I know you better than anybody else in both worlds." Rukia says, turning and walking away from him. He follows with a smile. For some reason that comment made him really happy. He forgets why he was annoyed just a minute ago.

"Rukia?" Ichigo says, and Rukia stops. He puts his arm around her and grins at her.

"How about I show you something new?" He says it in a voice that makes her body shiver a little bit.

"Sure!" Rukia says breathlessly. Ichigo decides it would be fun to take her bowling. Her eyes widen at the sound of the balls hitting the pins and the pins crashing down. She already feels excited.

Ichigo finds himself smiling as he's teaching her how to hold the bowling ball. "What an odd human activity!" Rukia had exclaimed. Ichigo felt successful in his endeavor to make sure she didn't feel like too much a pro on the living world. He would never say it out loud, but he dreaded the day she got bored with his world.

She's a natural. In her first game ever, she ended up with two strikes, two spares and only two gutter balls. Her favorite part of the game though is when Ichigo bowls, since she gets a really good view of his rear every time it's his turn. Her least favorite part are the shoes, since they make her feel like a clown.

"Thanks!" Rukia says to Ichigo as they leave. "I can say one thing for sure, life with you is never boring!" Rukia practically sings as she skips ahead of him. He allows himself to give an absurdly pleased smile to her back.

He should have never worried in the first place. Even if she gets bored with the living world, she doesn't ever seem to get bored of him.


	8. Isshin's Plan

Rukia knew Isshin was trying to catch her and Ichigo together doing something suspicious. There were several mornings where he burst into Ichigo's room a lot earlier than normal, and he was always shocked to find Ichigo alone in bed.

On one such morning, Ichigo didn't even awaken to his dad, only Rukia had woken, and she had slid open the closet door, just a notch. Isshin was annoyed with his son.

"For the love of..." Isshin scratches his head. "Son, you have a beautiful woman so close to you, and yet you never act on it. How in the hell am I ever supposed to get grandchildren if the two of you don't even sleep together?" Isshin had sighed sadly and Rukia had covered her mouth to keep from laughing.

Rukia had fallen back to sleep with a smile on her face. She grew a bit alarmed the next morning though, when she heard Ichigo's father on the phone. She stops out of sight to listen when she hears hers and Ichigo's names fall from his lips.

"It's sad but true, Ichigo has yet to even try and seduce Rukia-chan! We've got to do something to help those two clueless lovebirds get together!" Rukia gasps. Just what is Ichigo's father planning?

Rukia runs straight upstairs to Ichigo's room. He's still asleep. She runs over to his bed saying his name urgently. When he doesn't open his eyes, she starts shaking him. Hard.

"Ichigo! Wake up! Right now! I have a bad feeling-" Rukia starts to say but Ichigo starts to snore. "Are you ignoring me?" She asks with a gasp. Ichigo stiffens when he hears the tone she gives him next. "If you really don't care, then I won't tell you. But don't ask me later why I didn't warn you!" Rukia hisses furiously before stomping out of his room. Ichigo sighs.

"First thing in the morning and she's already got a problem? What could it be?" Ichigo is still pondering this when his old man enters the room with a flying kick aimed at Ichigo's head. Ichigo dodges, but his father's foot catches his shoulder and they both fly back into the wall just below the window.

"Too slow, my son! You still can't best your old man yet!" His father yells in his face, and a little bit of spit lands on Ichigo's face, prompting him into a fury.

"Get the hell out!" Ichigo roars at his father as he picks him up by the top and bottom of the back of his shirt. Ichigo literally throws his father out of his room. His father crawls away moaning.

"My son is so mean!" Isshin whines, and as he crawls along, Rukia exits the bathroom freshly bathed and wrapped in a dark blue towel. Isshin looks up at her like she's amazing. A tear falls from his eye.

"What's wrong?" Rukia asks, her voice filled with concern. Isshin looks at her big blue eyes and shakes his head.

"My son is so stupid. It's pathetic, really." Isshin whispers as he keeps on crawling. Rukia grins.

"What did you say, old-" Ichigo appears in the hallway and starts screaming at his father when he's greeted by the sight of Rukia fresh out of the shower in only a towel. He forgets his train of thought and gulps. "Rukia?" Ichigo squeaks. Rukia rolls her eyes.

"Please don't make a habit of calling me Old Rukia, makes me sound like a dog." Rukia commands as she walks past him into his bedroom. Ichigo shakes his head to clear his thoughts and wanders into the kitchen. He finds his father on the phone inviting some people over.

"Why are you throwing a party dad?" Ichigo asks with curiosity.

"It's for Rukia." Isshin whispers covering the mouthpiece of the phone.

"What's the occasion?" Ichigo asks, but his father waves him away. Ichigo slowly walks upstairs and gets aggravated with himself when he knocks on his own bedroom door.

"What?" Rukia calls out.

"Are you decent?" Ichigo asks.

"Yes!" Rukia says, and Ichigo opens the door. Rukia smiles at him.

"Rukia-chan!" Isshin's voice yells from the kitchen and Ichigo growls. Rukia runs past Ichigo and finds his father. Isshin holds out a wad of cash.

"O-ji-sama?" Rukia asks in confusion.

"Yoruichi will be here in a couple of minutes to take you shopping for clothes for your party. I want you to buy something cute with this!" Isshin says putting the money in her hands. Rukia's eyes widen in happy surprise.

"Why are you throwing me a party?" Rukia whispers.

"It's the least I can do to thank you for everything you've done for the family, don't you think?" Isshin asks her back in a whisper. Rukia grins. How can she possibly argue with that?

"Thank you!" Rukia says, as she goes and sits on the couch waiting for Yoruichi. When Ichigo finally comes downstairs to find her, she's already left with Yoruichi. Ichigo growls. At least his dad isn't on the phone and he can ask somebody why they're having a party for his loud partner.

"Dad!" Ichigo calls out when he finally corners his dad in the kitchen. His father immediately pushes Ichigo out of the way and ignores him.

"Yuzu! Karin!" Isshin calls out.

"Dad!" Ichigo says again

"Ichigo, you are going to go with your sisters. There are too many things on this list for those two to be able to carry this stuff by themselves." Isshin says. Yuzu and Karin appear as he's finishing his sentence. Isshin thrusts a list at Yuzu.

"Dad?" Yuzu asks, looking over the list.

"Pick this stuff up for Rukia-chan's party, please. Daddy is going to head to a grown up store and pick up a few things." Isshin explains as he hands Ichigo a bunch of money.

"Why are we having a party for her anyways? Did I miss something?" Ichigo asks in confusion.

"Son, you miss an awful lot. Just don't upset Rukia by not showing up to the party that we're throwing in her honor." Isshin says with a shake of his head. Ichigo glares at him.

"Like I would really miss a party for my best friend, when it's being thrown in my own home." Ichigo scoffs at his father. Ichigo walks out the front door with his sisters and is halfway to their destination when he realizes he still doesn't know why they're throwing Rukia a party.

"This is perfect." Yoruichi holds up a flashy strapless black and white dress that makes Rukia's skin look more creamy, her hair look more dark, and her eyes more vibrant. "You can really knock some socks off with this!" Yoruichi says, nodding with confidence.

Rukia looks at the dress, it seems like it was made for her. She slowly nods. She can't wait to see Ichigo's face when he sees her in this. A pair of dress shoes with a modest heel and earrings with a black choker complete the outfit.

_Later that night_

"Where is Rukia?" Ichigo mutters to his father who is busy laughing with Urahara. His father glances at him with a small grin on his face.

"She's getting dressed in your sister's room. She'll be out shortly." Isshin responds before turning back to Urahara. Ichigo looks around feeling a bit glum. He wishes she'd hurry up.

Rukia takes a sip of the now nearly empty drink Yoruichi handed her before she walked up to the girl's room. She was all alone now with her mudslide. She loved the way it melted in her mouth. Rukia looks at herself in the Yuzu's mirror and turns around to make sure she's all in order. She feels like she's a bit overdressed.

She finishes the last of her drink and heads for the sounds of the party that Isshin has told her he's throwing to thank her. Rukia snorts knowingly, she heard him on the phone. If only she knew exactly what his plan was. Yoruichi meets her at the bottom of the stairs.

"What happened to your drink?" Yoruichi asks.

"It was so good, I finished it already," Rukia admits.

"Want another one?" Yoruichi asks.

"Sure. What is it called again?" Rukia asks. Yoruichi grins at her.

"Mudslide." Yoruichi practically purrs the word. Rukia walks into the kitchen and Yoruichi hands her a fresh mudslide. Rukia thanks her and heads out into the living room where she immediately sees Ichigo, and when he sees her, she wants to laugh at the range of emotions that show on his face.

Relief, at first he looks relieved to see her. Aw, was he waiting for me? As Rukia wonders that, his expression changes to shock. He is just now taking in her entire appearance. Strapless dress, shoes, choker, and earrings, the whole works. Rukia smiles at this. His expression then goes to one of longing, one he rarely allows her or others to see, and he swiftly puts his usual scowl back on his face before joining her where she stands.

"You look nice." That's all he says. Rukia smiles as she takes a big gulp of her chocolaty frozen beverage.

"Thanks." Rukia says softly before drinking some more. Ichigo stares at the drink in her hand.

"What's that?" Ichigo asks her. Rukia tries to remember the name, but she can't. She holds out her drink to him.

"Want to try it?" She asks him with a smile. Ichigo nods and takes the drink from her. He tries it and hands it back to her.

"That was good." Ichigo says as he smacks his lips together.

"Yeah, it's really good." Rukia says, still smiling at Ichigo. She realizes he's looking at her intently.

"You look really happy." Ichigo mutters, as he notices people are looking at them. Rukia doesn't notice and she keeps drinking her mudslide while it's still in it's mostly frozen state.

"You don't." Rukia points out, before drinking some more of her drink. Ichigo scowls.

"You took a long time to come out of my sister's room." Ichigo mutters under his breath.

"I get it, even though you were waiting for me, you're still going to growl and scowl now that I'm here." Rukia says with a sigh. Sometimes Ichigo goes too far in his quest to keep his feelings a secret. It's a good thing she saw his true emotions go across his face a minute ago, or she'd be feeling down now. She sucks down the last of her drink and walks towards the kitchen for a refill.

Isshin nudges Urahara as Ichigo follows Rukia into the kitchen.

"Phase One is a success." Isshin says excitedly as he sees Yoruichi give him the thumbs up sign from the kitchen.

"She's already on her third mudslide?" Urahara asks with a raised eyebrow. Isshin nods with a snicker.

"Yep. The first one was made by me for Rukia-chan to drink while she changed, but the second two are Yoruichi's, and we both know how potent her mudslides are," Isshin says, still snickering.

"It appears your son has one as well." Urahara says with a small smile.

"Beginning of phase two commences!" Isshin says with glee.

"You are truly a strange man, getting so involved in your son's life. If he catches wind of this, he'll lose his temper. It won't be pretty." Urahara warns Isshin, and Isshin just shakes his head with a smile.

"Nah, he may be my son, but he has a lot to learn." Isshin says, looking at Ichigo and Rukia.

"It looks like Yoruichi is ready for the next phase." Urahara says, and Isshin looks towards the kitchen. Yoruichi has a mudslide herself and she sidles up to Ichigo and Rukia.

"Hey you two, are you enjoying the party?" Yoruichi asks as she takes a drink. Rukia nods, she's starting to feel very happy for no particular reason at all.

"I guess." Ichigo allows, as he takes a drink.

"I have an idea to liven things up a bit." Yoruichi says with a lazy smile.

"Yeah?" Ichigo asks, trying to sound uninterested as he watches Rukia out the corner of his eyes.

"Let's have a contest, to see who can finish their frozen drink the fastest!" Yoruichi says with a smirk.

"You're on." Rukia immediately accepts the challenge and Ichigo looks back and forth between the women.

"Are you in or out, Ichigo?" Yoruichi asks with a challenging gleam in her eye.

"I'm not going to get beat by a couple of girls!" Ichigo exclaims. "Are you two ladies ready?" Ichigo asks. Yoruichi smiles and nods, and Rukia glares up at Ichigo.

"Ready any time you are," Rukia says with a sassy tone.

"Wait, we need an impartial party to give the countdown to make it fair. I don't want anybody having a sorry excuse for why they didn't win!" Yoruichi says as she looks around. "Kisuke!" Yoruichi calls Urahara over.

"Yes, how can I be of service?" Urahara asks with a tip of his hat.

"We're having a frozen drink-drinking contest." Yoruichi explains. "Please count down from three to one and then say go. Go will be our queue to start!" Yoruichi looks at Ichigo and Rukia. "Understand?" She asks. They nod.

"Very well, let us proceed then. Three…two…one…go!" Urahara calls out as Isshin chortles a few feet away. The three participants lift their glasses, and Yoruichi, who could easily beat them both, purposely paces herself with Ichigo and allows him to beat her a millisecond in advance for the chance to demand a rematch. Ichigo looks so smug. Rukia finishes hers right after Yoruichi, which comes as a surprise to Yoruichi. She didn't think Rukia would be able to finish one that quickly.

"Rematch! I can't believe this kid actually beat me. I won't be satisfied until I get a rematch." Yoruichi says in a voice that means business.

"What?" Ichigo looks a little surprised at her seriousness.

"Rematch. Or are you scared since it was so close?" Yoruichi asks in a hard voice.

"You're on!" Ichigo says angrily.

"I want another chance too!" Rukia pipes up. Yoruichi heads into the kitchen to get fresh potent drinks and Urahara grins when he hears Isshin a few feet away.

"Success. It's all going according to plan!"

_Two hours later_

"The room is spinning." Rukia comments more calmly than she should. She grabs onto Ichigo's arm as she feels like she's about to fall. Ichigo throws her an unguarded lopsided grin.

"Don't worry, I'll catch you if you fall." Ichigo says with far more confidence than he should. He sways a little bit. Rukia looks up at him and giggles.

"I might have to end up catching you," she giggles again as he sways dangerously.

"We might both be in a little trouble," Ichigo mumbles, only it sounds like "widdle twubble." Rukia laughs so hard she immediately starts to fall. Ichigo, true to his word, tries to catch her but only ends up cradling her in his arms and he falls onto his back taking the full force of the fall. He lets out a groan.

"You two are pitiful! Go upstairs and lay down before you make complete asses of yourselves!" Isshin orders in a loud voice. Ichigo and Rukia, both blush and nod with embarrassment. Everyone watches in amusement as Ichigo and Rukia rely on each other (pitiful though that is) and make their way out of sight towards Ichigo's room. Isshin holds up his glass as he hears them stumble up the stairs.

"Success! Cheers!" Isshin yells and everybody left drinks and laughs.

Ichigo bumps hard into the wall as he and Rukia are attempting to make it upstairs. He hears his father shout and then he hears a cheer, but he can't wrap his mind around any of that or he might fall down the stairs with Rukia. Every time it feels like they're leaning towards Rukia's side, Ichigo yanks her up against his side so that it's him crashing into the wall each time.

"I cannot seem to walk a straight line," Rukia says, slurring her words. They're nearing the top of the staircase.

"Don't worry, I got you," Ichigo says softly, narrowing his eyes to concentrate on the next step which appears to actually be moving as he tries to concentrate.

"I know you do," Rukia mutters back. When they come to the top step, Rukia nearly falls, and Ichigo ends up on his knees. Rukia looks down into his eyes, as she waits for him to stand again. Ichigo gulps and can't think as he stares into her eyes, which are so warm and inviting right now.

"Rukia, don't look at me like that." Ichigo whispers as he struggles to his feet.

"Like what?" Rukia asks, confused. Truthfully, she'd been spacing out for a second while waiting for him to stand and hadn't been thinking about anything.

"Like that. Like you have all the warmth in the world." Ichigo says, feeling stupid.

"Huh?" Rukia asks, genuinely confused. Ichigo tears his gaze away from hers and puts his arm around her to concentrate on getting to his room. After swaying and nearly toppling over a couple of times, they finally make it into his room. Rukia kicks off her party shoes and attempts to unzip her dress, which seems to be a physical impossibility right now. Ichigo is trying to walk towards his bed so that he can sit and remove his shirt, but he stumbles and crashes face first into the floor, causing Kon to pop out from under the covers.

"What's wrong with you, Ichigo?" Kon asks. Ichigo grumbles as he fumbles for his substitute license. Once he has a firm hold on it, he clocks Kon with it and grabs up the green capsule that contains his annoying personality.

"I do not want to hear you." Ichigo mutters as he crawls over to his desk and shoves the pill in a drawer and closes it. He stands and takes slow and careful steps to his bed and sits down. He finally notices Rukia who appears to be trying to reach something on her back. "What are you doing?" Ichigo asks as he tries to make sense of the situation.

"I can't get this off." Rukia mutters pitifully. Ichigo beckons at her.

"Come here." Ichigo waits for Rukia to get to him and he motions for her to turn around, once she's standing in between his knees as he sits on the bed.

"The choker first," Rukia says bossily.

"Yeah, yeah." Ichigo mutters as he fumbles with the choker's tiny clasp. He finally manages to get it undone without breaking it and he notices that she has a very beautiful, smooth and soft neck.

"Now the zipper please." Rukia orders, since Ichigo seems to think he's done.

"What?" Ichigo asks. Then he realizes she can't get to her zipper either. Maybe it's because of the alcohol, but Ichigo is actually surprised that he doesn't feel himself blushing. "Oh," Ichigo says as he places his left hand at the top of the dress, and his right thumb and index finger on the zipper. He unzips it slowly and carefully, to make sure he doesn't rip her dress. He can just imagine what she'd say if he did that.

He finally slides the zipper all the way down, and the first thing he notices is that Rukia did not wear a bra tonight. Ichigo feels his breath coming out a little harder. The zipper ran all the way to the top part of her butt. The second thing that Ichigo notices is that she's wearing lacy black underwear. He blinks.

"Thanks, Ichigo." Rukia says, turning slowly to face him, still in between his legs. She offers him a smile and as she's finally fully facing him, she unconsciously stops holding the top part of the front of her dress. Her dress falls to a heap around her upper thighs where Ichigo's legs are touching hers from their proximity.

The moment her dress fell, Ichigo's eyes about popped out of his head. He's completely wasted, and he's seeing something a wasted guy should not ever see.

Rukia doesn't look all that troubled, in fact, she's relieved to finally be out of the dress. She realizes belatedly that she is fully exposed to him from the waist up. She puts her arms in front of her chest and attempts to quickly step back.

Bad move. She immediately loses her balance and starts falling backwards. Ichigo tightens his legs on the outside of hers and grabs her by her waist as she lets go of her chest to catch herself as she fell. Ichigo yanks her so hard that they both fly back onto the bed, his face pressed into her chest.

"Are you okay, Rukia?" Ichigo asks in a small voice. He waits for her to get off of him.

"Only my pride is hurt," Rukia answers honestly, trying to figure out what she should do next. She's half naked in Ichigo's arms, on top of him, in his bed. Her legs are still caught in between his and he's still squeezing her legs with his, preventing her from moving at all.

Ichigo doesn't even notice that he has her pinned like this and Rukia doesn't want to tell him to loosen up until she figures out how she's going to cover up her chest so that he doesn't get a second good view. The fact that his face is pressed into her chest seems less important than him seeing her chest.

In Ichigo's drunken state, he somehow comes to the conclusion that Rukia doesn't want to leave his arms, and so he wraps his arms around her back and pulls her down so that her face is in front of him, rather than her chest. He looks up into her bright blue eyes and lets all of his act drop;

"Rukia," Ichigo murmurs as he nibbles on her lip. He kisses her and she enjoys it so much, she forgets trying to figure out a way to escape her embarrassment. She runs her fingers through his hair and then wraps her arms around him tight. He starts making noises as he kisses her that make her think he can't get enough of her either. They wrap up in each other's arms, kissing like the world might end in the morning, and they both pass out while making out.

Isshin sneaks into the room in the middle of the night to find Rukia and Ichigo under the covers cuddling as they sleep. He grins and then he drags in the family video recorder and puts in a fresh tape. He aims it at the bed so that when they wake up, it will be the first thing they see.

"Sleep tight!" Isshin whispers with a laugh.

_The next morning_

Rukia wakes up feeling warm, but then her head starts to pound. She turns and opens her eyes only to find herself face to face with Ichigo, who is also just now opening his eyes. They stare at each other wide eyed for an instant before they both scream. Ichigo quickly rolls out of bed and lands onto the floor with a thud.

As he does, the cover pulls away from Rukia's body revealing her bare chest, Rukia covers herself immediately and lets out another scream in anger and embarrassment. Ichigo, who saw all, starts to laugh and is silenced by Rukia who keeps the cover on her chest even as she leans forward to smack him. Hard.

Ichigo's head crashes into the floor at the force of her smack and as he looks up, he sees a video camera, with a blinking red light. His eyes widen in horror and Rukia notices the thing as well. Ichigo explained it to her, once. Her eyes widen in horror as they both scream loudly.

Yuzu nearly knocks the frying pan off the stove in the morning when she hears Ichigo and Rukia screaming loudly from the direction of Ichigo's room. She hears a thud and then another louder scream from Rukia. She can hear her brother start to laugh and then she hears another thud. Then she hears them both scream again. Yuzu grins and shakes her head. Rukia sure does fit in with the family!

Isshin looks up at the ceiling from his seat on the couch and lets out a loud howl of laughter. He laughs so hard that he cries when he hears them arguing about what to do with the tape.

Rukia wants to watch it, at first, since she doesn't really remember much of last night, and Ichigo does not want to watch it. They both agree it should be destroyed, but the argument is over whether or not they should watch it first. Rukia's curiosity wins out and she is able to preserve the tape for watching at a later time.

_A few days later_

Things have been weird between them, and now that Rukia's seen the tape, she decides to keep it. She doesn't tell him what's on it, just that it didn't show them having sex. They're both able to stop letting the incident bother them after a week has passed.

Rukia waits until Ichigo's in the shower and she puts the tape in the VCR. She doesn't notice Isshin standing in the doorway as he grins and secretly watches the tape with her. The part she's watching, Ichigo has her close in his arms and you can clearly hear him mutter on the tape.

"Rukia, I love you." Ichigo's voice is soft but sure. This is the third time she's seen it and she smiles at the tape.

"I'll never throw it away or destroy it." She whispers.

Isshin walks away and joins Yuzu in the kitchen.

"Daddy?" Yuzu asks, just before Isshin yells happily.

"SUCCESS!"


	9. Ichigo's Protection

_Ichigo's Protection_

Rukia climbs a tree and sits out of sight in some leafy but strong branches. She was bored and nervous at lunch, since Ichigo got called into the principal's office, probably for this morning's altercation with the older kid who bleached his hair and still didn't have the kind of vibrancy in his hair that Ichigo has in his hair. The kid was a complete ass. She knows she's seen him before but she can't remember his name.

Rukia gets angry just remembering his smug attitude as he'd grabbed at her arm. Rukia was well aware that she couldn't fight this boy the way she actually wanted to, not in Ichigo's school anyways. Even though she goes there too, it's still his school, she's only here because of him, and she wouldn't want to do anything that brought him any more negative attention than what he'd already gotten.

She shouldn't have even thought or worried about those kinds of things though, because Ichigo handled it in a much more violent way than she would have. She would have left him injured but intact. She doesn't think she's ever sent anybody to the hospital, not on purpose anyways.

The guy had made the mistake of walking up behind Ichigo & Rukia and yanking on her arm. Rukia had let out a soft cry in surprise at being grabbed by a normal human in school and when Ichigo turned his head to see what happened, she had never seen such a scary face on Ichigo, especially considering the opponent was a mere human. A disgusting, vile, rude, in need of a good ass kicking human, but still human.

"Kurosaki, love your arm decoration, I want her." The guy had said. Rukia's mouth had fallen open at this filthy human's choice of words to describe her and she was forcefully holding her arms and legs still to keep from murdering the kid in front of dozens of witnesses.

"Get your hand off of her unless you want me to break it." Ichigo had said in a cold hard voice. The hand on her arm tightened and Rukia gasps in anger. The nerve! Rukia is gritting her teeth and shooting a death glare at the offensive brat who has her arm in a vice grip. Ichigo's hands shoot out so quickly, and it appears as though he grabs the guy's arm on either side of his elbow.

**"Ow!"** The guy screams and Rukia hears the satisfying snap of bones breaking before the offending brat finally let go of her arm.

"If you ever touch her again, I can't guarantee you'll walk away alive." Ichigo had hissed before gently grabbing Rukia's arm and pushing up her sleeve to angrily observe the bruises. He gently put his hand on her shoulder and guided her to class. He'd been called into the principal's office awhile ago.

She hoped he wasn't in any trouble because of her. She could feel his reiatsu nearby, but it hasn't moved any closer to her since he left class. She sighs as she hears voices coming closer. It's the group she and Ichigo usually eat with.

Rukia sighs as she stays still. She doesn't have the energy or patience to put on her classic act right now. Normally, she loved playing the part of a brainless teenage girl, she absolutely loves the way it drives Ichigo mad. Right now though she's just not up for it. Ichigo would probably love to see her hoping she doesn't have to play that part, but he's not here right now.

She would prefer to remain undiscovered, but that'll be difficult with Ishida's reiatsu sensing abilities. She conceals her own reiatsu as much as she can as she closes her eyes and hopes they pass by the tree she's in without noticing her. She also finally starts to feel Ichigo moving towards her, even though she can't see him yet.

Luck was not on her side. Damn. They all started settling beneath the tree she was in. Rukia feels a bit of annoyance at this, but she still doesn't make her presence known. Now it's a matter of trying to remain undiscovered. She can clearly recognize each person's voice as they talk, which makes her feel like she's eavesdropping.

"Did you hear about Ichigo beating up that upperclassmen, Ooshima, who always dyes his hair orange?" Keigo asks the group. Rukia nearly slaps the side of her head. That's what his name was, that's right, she remembered exactly why he seemed familiar now, he was the same kid who demanded Ichigo dye his hair, on the same day Chad had shown up with the soul infused bird. How could she have forgotten that?

"Yeah, it's not the first time they've fought, but it's the first time Ichigo didn't take a hit. It's also the first time one of them had to go to the hospital." Tatsuki's voice answers in reply.

"Kurosaki-kun sent someone to the hospital?" Rukia hears Inoue say. "That doesn't sound like him at all."

"Inoue, you don't know what happened?! Oh my gosh Everyone has been talking about it, how could you not know?!" Chizuru sounds genuinely shocked. Inoue shrugs. She hadn't heard anything until now.

"Yeah, apparently the guy grabbed Kuchiki-san and Ichigo broke his arm for grabbing her." Mizuiro's voice explains to Inoue.

"Over Kuchiki-san? If you'd said that in the first place, I wouldn't have been surprised. Of course Kurosaki-kun would attack someone who grabbed Kuchiki-san." Inoue says as she unwraps a mystery lunch that would need to be explained by her to be understood.

"You aren't surprised? I was surprised, especially since Ichigo has never even defended Hime so violently. Not even when a guy was hugging her in a perverted way." Chizuru remarks. Tatsuki snorts at Chizuru's remark. Inoue remembers how the Shinji had grabbed and hugged her, and Shinji had no marks or bruises of any kind to account for his confrontation with Ichigo over her.

"Where do you get off accusing someone else of hugging her in a perverted way? You're the worst offender of them all!" Tatsuki growls. Ishida gets them back on topic.

"Kurosaki is very protective of Kuchiki-san," Rukia hears Ishida explain. "More protective over her than anyone else." Ishida adds, but he feels bad at the way Inoue's shoulders droop a bit over that comment. It's not his fault though that this is today's lunch topic.

"Yeah, come to think of it, the first time I ever tried to talk to Kuchiki-san at lunch, she was with Ichigo and he started giving her warnings about me. I've never seen him warn any girl about me, except for Kuchiki-san. He even told her I was a womanizer!" Mizuiro tells the group. "To be honest, I've thought for the longest time that something was going on between the two of them. Ever since I first saw them eating lunch together."

"Every time I try to invite Kuchiki-san out and she agrees, Ichigo always shows up with her. He refused to go to the live TV special with Don Kanonji until he heard Kuchiki-san was going!" Keigo whines. "He's been hogging her company since she transferred here!" Keigo exclaims rather miserably. Rukia rolls her eyes at this. Like she would ever be attracted to a moron like Keigo.

"He walks to school and back to her home practically every day," Inoue says it so softly, Rukia has to strain her ears in order to hear it. "She probably likes that."

"He does seem nicer around her too," Michiru timidly speaks up. A few of the other girls nod at that.

"They're a lot alike," Chad says and everybody just stares at him, a couple of the guys mouths drop open in shock. He's not known for contributing to lunch conversation on his own without being asked specifically for his input. He's even known for not telling a whole story, simply because it would take too many words.

"What? How can you insult Kuchiki-san that way?!" Keigo responds in an annoyed yet excited voice. "She's like an angel! She's Ichigo's polar opposite!"

"In some ways they are, but their personalities are practically the same." Ishida says, although nobody except Inoue pays attention to him.

"No, Ishida-kun is right. They're very similar. The big difference is that Kuchiki-san smiles when she's being nice, and Kurosaki-kun scowls when he's being nice." Inoue explains. Tatsuki laughs, and Keigo looks like he's about to have heart palpitations. Kurosaki, nice?

"Sorry Inoue, but Kuchiki-san is much kinder and more polite than Ichigo could ever hope to be." Tatsuki says with a bit of a chuckle.

"Have you ever seen the two of them go at each other's throats?" Ishida asks Tatsuki. Tatsuki's eyes widen.

"Of course not! I've never heard a rude remark come out of her mouth ever!" Tatsuki says with surprise in her eyes.

"Then you have no idea just how much like Kurosaki she is underneath all those smiles and polite words." Ishida says, causing Tatsuki to look at Inoue. She nods at Tatsuki.

"When they go at it, I swear you can actually see the sparks that fly through the air. I've never met two people more suited for each other." Ishida laments and Rukia blushes from up above, glad she's not in sight of anybody at the moment. Ishida continues when Tatsuki just stares at him.

"He's right. Sometimes they get so into it, that it's like they're the only people in the world. He is much more focused on her than any other person he knows." Inoue admits sadly.

"No way." Tatsuki says, still disbelieving.

"You want proof? Keigo, how would you like to make enough money to buy a couple of new release CDs?" Ishida asks Keigo, who glares in response.

"Not enough to chance Ichigo's temper on a day like today." Keigo says intelligently, causing a few people's mouths to drop open in surprise.

"Really?" Tatsuki asks, as Keigo is always good for doing something stupid for money. Keigo glares at her.

"Didn't this conversation start out by talking about how he sent somebody to the hospital over her? Why isn't that proof enough for you?" Keigo asks in an annoyed voice. "Besides, I have no desire to spend the rest of my day or week or month in the hospital like Ooshima."

"There's a better way to get proof than to get beaten and bloodied by Kurosaki," Ishida explains like he's talking to a three year old.

"Like what?" Tatsuki asks him. Ishida pushes his glasses up higher on his nose.

"Do you have any unattached male cousins?" Ishida asks her. Tatsuki nods yes.

"What, you want to get one of her cousins injured?" Mizuiro asks Ishida, and Ishida shakes his head no.

"Tatsuki just needs to walk up to Kuchiki-san in front of Kurosaki and tell her that she'd like to set up Kuchiki-san with her cousin. I'm sure whatever response you get will be proof enough that he's got a thing for Kuchiki." Ishida says quietly.

Rukia feels her heart pound loudly._ Why are they conspiring like this?_ She wonders, feeling like her private life is being invaded. Why must she and Ichigo be the main topic of discussion? How will she avoid Tatsuki when she's with Ichigo? Rukia does not want this little plan to be followed through.

"That's perfect!" Tatsuki answers with a laugh. Ishida all of a sudden looks straight up into the tree.

"Or you could just ask Kuchiki-san about it." Ishida whispers, pointing up. Every one of their gazes travel upwards and Rukia closes her eyes as though she fell asleep in the tree, and wasn't listening to their embarrassing conversation about her.

"What is she doing up there?" Mizuiro asks.

"Probably listening to us." Ishida says with a snort. Rukia decides to remind herself to not yell at Ichigo the next time he's giving Ishida a hard time. Now she's going to have to fall out of the tree to make her act a success.

"Kuchiki-san?" Inoue calls up. Rukia does not answer.

"Yo, Kuchiki-san? What are you doing?" Keigo yells out. Rukia doesn't move an inch.

"How did she get up there?" Chizuru asks Inoue. Inoue shrugs. They're all staring up and they don't notice that Ichigo has finally been released from the principal's office and is heading towards them.

"She isn't answering us or moving." Chad finally says. Everyone looks at him. Keigo screams at the top of his lungs.

**"Kuchiki-san!"** Keigo's voice is so loud, everyone else covers their ears. Rukia realizes this is the perfect time to act like she's just woken up. She lets out a loud gasp and then a yelp as she purposely loses her balance in the tree. Keigo, Mizuiro, Tatsuki, and Chizuru all look horrified as she loses her balance and topples out of the branch she was sitting in.

Ichigo who saw them all looking up had quickened his step. When he heard Keigo scream for Rukia, he sprinted over to the rest of the group and looked up in time to see Rukia falling. Ichigo feels his heart drop through his stomach.

"**Rukia!**" Ichigo yells at the top of his lungs as he lunges forward to catch her before she smacks the ground, but because he dives, and twists his body in mid-air, He lands on his back, on the ground, a tree root underneath his lower back, and she is in his arms, safe and sound with her heart racing. She quickly sits up and Ichigo doesn't move.

"Oh my god, are you okay?" Rukia yells as she quickly moves off of him and moves to his side. "Ichigo!" Rukia says loudly in his face. He can only grimace as he opens his eyes in pain. His breathing is labored and he cannot speak.

"I hope he's okay!" Inoue says quietly to Tatsuki, who's starting to think she doesn't need proof about Ichigo and Rukia's feelings for one another.

Everyone watches as Ichigo finally gets a hold of his breath, and when he speaks, he looks only at Rukia.

"Are you okay?" He asks her, in a worried tone of voice.

"Of course, idiot, you're the only one who's hurt." Rukia says as her voice breaks a little. "Thanks for catching me."

"As long as you're okay." Ichigo mumbles before he attempts to sit up. Rukia immediately puts her hands on his shoulders to offer him support. She's forgotten all about the embarrassing incident that led to this, but Tatsuki hasn't.

"Hey Kuchiki-san, what were you doing up in that tree?" Tatsuki asks her, wondering if the girl had heard their conversation.

"When I first went up there, I was thinking, but I must have dozed off, because the next thing I knew, Keigo was shouting my name and I lost my balance!" Rukia lies her ass off well. Her hands are still supporting Ichigo who she is now standing behind as she holds his shoulders. Ichigo looks up as his breath starts to return to normal.

"I haven't had the wind knocked out of me in a long time," Ichigo mutters.

"Are you alright, Kurosaki-kun?" Inoue asks him worriedly. Tatsuki looks at Ichigo and Rukia and finally decides she wants to see Ichigo's reaction too.

"I'm fine, Inoue." Ichigo says as he starts to stand. Rukia's hands keep supporting him until he's on his feet. Once he is, she unthinkingly moves to his side. A constant team.

"Actually, my cousin who lives in the next town likes petite dark haired girls. I was wondering if you would meet my cousin, who I'm sure would like you." Tatsuki says to Rukia, while watching Ichigo. His mouth is in a straight line and his lips are pressed together so hard. Rukia wants to answer before Ichigo can react, and so she smiles at Tatsuki. She can sense Ichigo tensing up next to her.

"I appreciate the offer, but I'm seeing someone already." Rukia responds. She feels Ichigo's eyes staring angrily at her and she watches as everybody else stares at Ichigo. He knows damned well that she isn't seeing someone else and this is her lame attempt at getting out of their scrutiny. She fails miserably.

"Really? Who?" Tatsuki asks, crossing her arms. Rukia glances at Ichigo, looking for help.

"So you two are an item?" Mizuiro asks Rukia and Ichigo with a smile. Ichigo's eyes widen and he can't find his voice, even though he shakes his head no.

"I didn't say that." Rukia says as her cheeks turn red.

"Well him breaking another guy's arm for touching you said it all." Keigo says in a sad voice.

"What?" Ichigo finally finds his voice. "What in the hell are you talking about?" Ichigo asks in a horrified voice. He had no idea the details were well known throughout the school. Rukia closes her eyes tight for a moment, trying to get complete composure.

"Everyone knows about your fight this morning." Mizuiro informs Ichigo, who turns bright red and mumbles to himself as he looks away.

"Plus, you've never attacked any guy over a girl before," Tatsuki says in a know-it-all voice. Ishida, Sado, and Inoue all exchange a glance since they all know Ichigo has gone through many difficult battles specifically to protect Rukia.

Ichigo surprises everybody in different ways by grabbing Rukia's wrist and shoving up the sleeve of her uniform to reveal large hand sized black and blue bruises on her arm. A couple of the girls gasp at his lack of hesitation to grab Kuchiki and then reveal her covered skin without so much as a word to her first! Even Rukia gasps in surprise. If he's trying to convince everyone that they aren't close, then he just failed miserably. Only someone who was close to you would feel comfortable enough to grab you and push your clothes out of the way first to show friends some bruises. His familiarity was glaringly obvious to everybody except for him.

"She and I were walking to class when that jerk, Ooshima, grabbed her so hard she ends up with these kind of bruises. Of course I'm going to hurt the guy." Ichigo says in an annoyed voice. The girls gasp at the marks on Rukia's pale skin.

"Ichigo!" Rukia hisses as she yanks the sleeve back down over the bruises. "Can you try not to undress me to prove I was attacked?" Rukia lets out a loud annoyed sigh.

"You two are very familiar with each other." Mizuiro observes as he notices they call each other by their given names. Ichigo shoots an annoyed glare at Rukia. She doesn't appreciate that very much and she makes a mental note to pinch him hard later. She would normally punch him, but she's feeling a little bit soft since he caught her.

"Why are you guys so curious?" Ichigo demands in an annoyed voice.

"Probably, because you're so secretive." Tatsuki snorts at him.

"It's not your concern." Ichigo says in an angry voice. Tatsuki looks at him.

"What is that supposed to mean? We've been friends, practically forever!" Tatsuki says in a loud angry voice. Everyone except Inoue, Sado, and Ishida nod their head in agreement.

"That doesn't mean you're entitled to know all of my private business!" Ichigo snaps at her.

"Plus if you're not the one she's seeing, I know a girl that's interested in you." Tatsuki adds with her eyes narrowed. Ichigo shakes his head in annoyance, remembering how his stomach had dropped when Tatsuki said she had a guy for Rukia. His day is going bad enough. Now he's pissed.

"Not interested, Tatsuki." Ichigo says in an angry voice. He shoots a pointed look at Rukia that seems to say, THAT'S HOW YOU ANSWER THAT QUESTION!

"Why not? Are you obligated to someone else?" Tatsuki pushes. Ichigo glares at her for not stopping with her uncomfortable questions.

"I don't have time for that." Ichigo snaps at her. "I don't need anybody's help in that area." Ichigo snaps as he turns on his heel. He doesn't even think about it, he just grabs Rukia's arm (gently) and drags her away with him. After he realizes what he's done, he swears to himself that he did it to keep her from blurting out any information he didn't want them to know.

"I think they protest too strongly." Mizuiro says as he watches them walk away. They see Ichigo let go of her arm. "He definitely likes her." Mizuiro nods his head at his own remark and grins as the two walk so close their arms are brushing up against each other.

"You could cut the sexual tension with a fork!" Keigo says angrily.

"Yeah, I have to agree." Tatsuki says reluctantly.

"I don't even think he consciously realizes that he does that all the time." Inoue says softly and everybody focuses on her.

"What?" Tatsuki asks, wanting her to explain further.

"He always wants Kuchiki-san to be with him. He almost never walks away without her." Inoue says, surprised nobody else has noticed that as well.

"Now that I think about it, you're right!" Tatsuki says, her eyes widening.

"It doesn't seem like Kuchiki-san really minds being with him either." Mizuiro comments. Ishida rolls his eyes. If only they knew that those two share a bedroom at night.

When lunch finally ends, they group all heads back to the classroom, expecting to see Rukia and Ichigo already there. The teacher stands in front of the class as the second part of the day begins. Her announcement shocks them all.

"Class, Kurosaki was suspended for a week due to his altercation with another student this morning. Upon hearing his punishment, Kuchiki-san demanded they retract it since he protected her, and she apparently had the marks to prove it. The principal refused to retract it and so she said she wanted the same punishment as Kurosaki since he got in trouble for her. Kurosaki is now only suspended three days and Kuchiki-san won't be in class as long as he's out." The teacher explains to the class, watching as some students look shocked and others look like they aren't the least bit surprised.

_After Class_

"They have to be a couple, she wouldn't have gone through voluntary suspension if they weren't," Keigo says to Mizuiro.

"No arguments here, I've suspected that they liked each other for the longest time." Mizuiro replies.

"Too bad, I really like Kuchiki-san," Keigo sighs sadly. Mizuiro gives him a sympathetic pat on the back.

"You never had a chance." Mizuiro says in a light unconcerned voice.

"So romantic," Inoue breathes sadly.

"Who, Ichigo?" Tatsuki asks with wide eyes. She apparently doesn't agree.

"Yeah. Those two are so in love with one another." Inoue whispers as she feels her heart break.

"Now all they have to do is realize it!" Tatsuki says with a laugh. "Ichigo's always been such a klutz with everything in the beginning. A little time learning, and he'll seem like a natural gigolo."

"Tatsuki-chan!" Inoue says feeling lower than ever. She wanted Kurosaki's gaze on her the way he looked at Rukia. No matter how close she attempts to get, or thinks she's getting, it always seems like Kuchiki-san is leagues ahead of her when it comes to owning Kurosaki's heart.

_Near the Kurosaki Clinic... _

Ichigo and Rukia are walking home and Ichigo glances at Rukia.

"Thanks for sticking up for me to the principal. You didn't have to do that." Ichigo says softly.

"I'm not in real world for the academics, Ichigo, I'm here to be with you. I can't very well grab you to run to a hollow if you're blocks away from me." Rukia says sweetly. "Plus, the idea of being around our nosy classmates without you, is less than thrilling." She smirks at him and he smiles back.

"Are you going to erase their memories?" Ichigo asks her

"I probably should, even though I was liking the idea of a few days out of school." Rukia replies.

"I agree. Lets take our three days and then erase their memories." Ichigo feels his hand bump up against hers.

"Thanks again, Ichigo, for everything today." Rukia says quietly, as she quickly grabs his hand and squeezes it before she lets go. Ichigo stares at her in surprise.

"Anytime, Rukia." Ichigo says back, as he enjoys the tingling in his hand, just from her touch.


	10. Ukitake's Party

Rukia looks at Ichigo as they pass through the gate to enter Soul Society. They were specifically invited for Ukitake's birthday celebration.

"Rukia, please don't disappear on me tonight." Ichigo asks her for the fifth time since they were invited. He's nervous about being in Soul Society again, especially since he doesn't know a lot of the Shinigami that reside there, even if he did beat the crap out of a large amount of them back when he came to save Rukia.

"I promise, Ichigo I will stick by you unless I for any reason need to go to the ladies room." Rukia says, getting annoyed with him. Ichigo looks relieved.

"Thanks." Ichigo says, gifting her with a tiny relieved smile.

"Where do we go?" I'm still not completely familiar with this place." Ichigo says, relying on her.

"Here." Rukia grabs his hand and they head on their way. Ichigo stares at their clasped hands and turns pink as they start walking. Rukia's not paying him any attention though, she cannot wait to see Captain Ukitake. Ichigo starts to notice that many of the lower level Shinigami are giving them curious glances, as they all know who the pair are. Ichigo and Rukia have become celebrities in Soul Society.

"Rukia? Why are people staring at us?" Ichigo asks her quietly as they continue along. She glances around and smiles back at him.

"You can't expect _not_ to attract attention after the way you stormed into this place to save me. Around here, we're famous." Rukia adds as she pays the staring spectators no more mind and walks a little more quickly. Ichigo glances at their clasped hands again, before wondering if famous people here are as watched as famous people in the living world.

"I guess." Ichigo mutters. He holds Ukitake's gift with the hand that isn't holding Rukia's. They had gone out shopping and decided together on a gift they thought he would enjoy. It was a plasma 360. It looks like a crystal ball, but when you put batteries in and turn it on, many lightening shaped lights run through the ball, and if you touch it, the light all moves towards your hand. They both thought he'd like it. They had a bag of gourmet candy for him too.

"Ichigo!" Rukia suddenly realizes she should probably warn him.

"Yeah?" He asks her as he stays in step next to her.

"We're probably going to be asked tonight if we're dating." Rukia says nonchalantly.

"What?! Why?" Ichigo asks in a panicked voice. He lets go of her hand to cross his arms.

"Are you serious? You really don't know?" Rukia asks him as she glances at him and rolls her eyes.

"Don't talk in circles Rukia, you tell me why they would wonder something like that?" Ichigo says, not wanting to discuss their relationship with anybody.

"Ichigo." Rukia stops to put her hands on her hips. "You did risk your life to save me, and for you to do that for me makes some people wonder." Rukia explains like he's a complete idiot.

"I'll warn you right now that if anybody asks me that, I'll tell them it's none of their damned business." Ichigo says in a low annoyed voice. Rukia grins. She's glad he won't tell them they're insane to think it. Ichigo sees her grin and doesn't know what to make of it.

"We're almost there. I'm happy we're able to celebrate Ukitake's birthday with him." Rukia says, as she really admires and respects her captain.

"Yeah, he's a good guy." Ichigo agrees, remembering how her captain went against Soul Society for her, just like Ichigo had.

"He thinks the same of you." Rukia says, looking up at him with pride. All of the members of her squad who were around when Kaien-dono was with them looked up to Ichigo in the same way they'd looked up to Kaien. Kiyone and Sentarou hadn't shut up about how amazing they thought Ichigo was, when she'd stayed in Soul Society to recover her spiritual powers.

Kiyone had even been grateful that he hadn't seriously wounded her sister when she gave chase to Rukia and Renji right after Ichigo saved Rukia. She had praised his strength and restraint. They had made her miss Ichigo so badly when all they would do is talk to her about him. They had asked so many questions too, Ichigo was an interesting topic among her squad. He was sure to be a big hit tonight.

Ichigo glances down at Rukia and sees a look on her face that he's certain he's never seen before. Rukia looks happy to be with him, and she's looking at him as though he's the most wonderful thing she's ever seen. Ichigo's eyes widen as his heart races a little bit faster. She's definitely never had this kind of adoring look on her face before.

"Rukia?" Ichigo asks, bringing her out of her thoughts. She looks away from him and mentally kicks herself in the head for staring at him and smiling like a complete idiot.

"Hmm?" Rukia asks. "Sorry, I got lost in thought."

"Please don't disappear on me tonight." Ichigo says in a near whisper. Rukia nods as they pass through a gate.

"Stop worrying, Ichigo. You're definitely well liked among the Thirteenth Division." Rukia says, trying to cheer him up.

Ichigo sweats. First of all, he can count with one hand how many people in her division that he knows the name and face of, and Rukia is included with that five. Second of all, he feels like he's going to be interrogated, he never thought the life of a celebrity looked too enjoyable when they had reporters in their face all of the time and people requesting autographs or saying their lines to them where ever they went. Thirdly, he has never truly felt accepted in Soul Society, he had torn apart valued traditions and had made fools out of several high level officers there.

At least he's with Rukia. That's his only comforting thought. That is why he's told her countless times that she cannot disappear on him. It's never fun, going to a party where you barely know anybody there. Before Ichigo knows it, they're at the Thirteenth Division Headquarters, and Rukia is opening the door to reveal a full blown celebration, already in progress.

"Kuchiki!" Someone yells, and Rukia glances through the crowd.

"Kiyone! How is Captain Ukitake?" Rukia asks as Ichigo stands next to her, pressing into her side a little bit. Rukia realizes why, as the girl is completely focused on him.

"Captain Ukitake is having a good day this year, thank goodness." Kiyone keeps staring at Ichigo, who at this point has gotten extremely uncomfortable with her staring. Rukia only knows because of how he keeps pressing into her.

"Ichigo, this is Kiyone, as you probably remember. She was one of the ones who assisted Captain Ukitake when he used the Shihouin clan seal to destroy the released blade of the Soukyoku." Rukia tells him. He's grateful for the reminder. She can't be at all bad if she helped Ukitake.

"Nice to see you again," Ichigo says, still feeling a tad bit uncomfortable at the way her eyes haven't left him since he set eyes upon her.

"Kurosaki-dono, it's a pleasure to see you again! You are a really amazing fighter!" Kiyone says with a small blush and a big smile. "Thank you for not seriously harming my sister back then. I never did get a chance to thank you." Kiyone says.

"Your sister?" Ichigo echoes, feeling nervous. Kiyone smiles at him and points at her sister in the crowd.

"Kotetsu Isane, Lieutenant of the Fourth Division. She's right over there, next to Captain Unohana." Ichigo follows where Kiyone's finger is pointing and he sees the young woman she's pointing to. Ichigo feels extremely awkward when he remembers how he attacked her when battling for Rukia.

"There are no hard feelings, Ichigo." Rukia says softly, putting her hand on his arm. Ichigo nods, even though he's grateful for her support.

"You're amazingly strong!" Kiyone continues, not noticing Ichigo's discomfort.

"Thanks." Ichigo says, feeling more embarrassed. How is it that Rukia, of all the Shinigami women he's met, impresses him the most?

"You should have some drinks and say hello, everyone is excited to see you both!" Kiyone gushes before she runs off to gloat to the others that she got to talk to Kurosaki first. Rukia chuckles, and Ichigo lets out a loud sigh. It's going to be a long night.

"Ichigo, you really need to loosen up, why don't we go grab a drink and then go say hello to Ukitake?" Rukia says, trying to get him to calm down. She had seen the look on his face when he'd glanced at Isane. Rukia knew the woman herself didn't hold a grudge and was grateful Ichigo hadn't harmed her more seriously, but Ichigo had probably never dreamed that he would ever see this woman as an ally instead of the enemy. She knows he doesn't regret his actions, but he isn't proud of overpowering a woman either. It's just who he is.

Ichigo sighs and nods to her suggestions. She manages to get them over to the drink table fairly quickly, even though plenty of people slowed them down.

"Rukia?" Ichigo asks as she hands him a drink.

"What?" Rukia asks as she holds up her glass for him to toast with her.

"This is more uncomfortable than I thought it would be." Ichigo says with a scowl, as he clinks glasses with her and takes a long swig of the drink she gave to him. It feels good on his dry throat.

"Relax, I admit Kiyone can be excitable, but she meant well. That's probably the worst it will get." Rukia says, not adding what she's thinking. _I hope._

"Forgive me if I'm not as optimistic as you are about that." Ichigo says, taking another big gulp of his beverage.

"You're already almost done with that. Why don't you finish it and I'll grab you a new one." Rukia says as Ichigo does as she instructs. She grabs him a fresh drink and takes a dainty sip of her own. She starts to head towards Ukitake and Ichigo stays right at her side. Rukia smiles. She enjoys this, it almost feels like a date. He doesn't want her to go away from him, they're at a party, acting kind of like a couple. It feels wonderful.

Ichigo glances at Rukia and notices that she seems extremely happy. He wonders if it's because she's back in Soul Society, and he lets that thought bug him as they approach her captain.

"Kuchiki! Ichigo-kun! How nice it is to see you both here!" Ukitake says warmly. Ichigo can't help but to return the smile.

"Happy birthday!" Ichigo and Rukia say it in unison. They both meet each other's eyes and blush. Ukitake laughs.

"Thank you very much." Ukitake says, as Ichigo hands him the gift bag he'd been holding for quite awhile now.

"This is for you." Ichigo says, and Ukitake glances at them.

"Is this from both of you?" Ukitake asks Rukia. Ichigo notices that several people in hearing distance have become quiet and are listening to their conversation. Ichigo takes another big gulp of his drink.

"Yes, Captain. We hope you like it. It's called a Plasma 360!" Rukia says with a smile. Ichigo pulls his drink away from his mouth long enough to nod his agreement. Ukitake smiles at both of them.

"Thank you!" Ukitake says as he opens the bag. His eyes widen happily at the sight of the gourmet candy, but he gets really excited over the Plasma 360.

"Wow, this is from the real world?" Ukitake asks, as he enjoys looking at his new gift.

"Yes! Now place your palm onto it!" Rukia urges him. Ukitake follows her direction and lays his palm on the globe and watches in awe as the light seems to be attracted to his hand.

"Wow, I love it! Thanks you two!" Ukitake says, and Rukia gives him a small bow before stepping away for someone else to be able to talk to him. She notices that Ichigo's glass is nearly empty and she leads him back by the drinks. She snags him up one and exchanges it for his nearly empty glass.

Ichigo rests his eyes on her, still wondering if her happiness is due to being in Soul Society, and he gets distracted for a second when she takes a drink and the strand of hair that usually falls across the center of her face, moves to the side revealing her smooth soft skin in its full completeness. Ichigo sucks in his breath quickly as she pulls the drink away from her lips and she meets his gaze. She still looks happy. Ichigo scowls at her.

"You okay?" Rukia asks, feeling a little bit concerned, Ichigo does look rather aggravated. "You want to sit down?" Rukia asks him. Ichigo looks like he loves this suggestion. Rukia grins and leads him away to a quiet room where it's just the two of them. Ichigo looks around, breathes a sigh of relief, and sinks down onto the bed. _Bed? Where are we?_

"Until we get an official lieutenant, Ukitake decided I could use the room reserved for that seated position, for whenever I'm here. For once, instead of me being in your room, you are in mine." Rukia grins at him.

"I thought you stayed at your brother's mansion." Ichigo says, confused.

"I do most of the time, but since we aren't going back tonight, I figured you'd prefer to stay in my room with me here, rather than in my brother's very stuffy mansion." Rukia says, still smiling.

"That was thoughtful of you, wait. Did you say we're staying here?" Ichigo asks as he sits up straighter. Rukia gives him a strange look.

"It seemed natural, we've been sleeping in the same room whenever we're together for ages." She keeps watching him. "Ichigo, is something bothering you?" She stares him down for a minute. Ichigo sighs. This is his chance to ask her so that he can stop wondering.

"You seem…happy." Ichigo says softly. Rukia takes a sip of her drink and keeps grinning at him until she remembers she asked if something was bothering him. She frowns.

"That bothers you?" Rukia asks, a bit confused.

"I was just wondering if you were happy because you're back here, back in Soul Society." Ichigo says with as little emotion as he can manage. Rukia looks up at him quickly and she can see the vulnerability there in his eyes.

"Actually, I'm really happy to be here celebrating Captain Ukitake's birthday with you. I don't think I'd be anywhere near as happy as I am if you hadn't come with me." Rukia responds, trying to kill all of his doubts. Ichigo tips his drink back before flashing her a weak smile.

"I'm glad." Ichigo says, staring into his empty glass. Rukia smiles and hands him her own half full glass.

"Here, you can finish this one. Are you about ready to rejoin the party?" Rukia asks him. She watches as Ichigo takes a sip of the drink that was hers. He looks up at her and his eyes look confident. Rukia smiles.

"Yeah. You have a nice room, Rukia. It was nice of Ukitake-san to let you have this room." Ichigo says, noting the bathroom attached.

"He felt really bad about the time I spent incarcerated because of Aizen's scheme. He also was really impressed with you, Ichigo." Rukia says, recalling how her captain had pulled her aside long ago to tell her he could see exactly why she felt so connected to Ichigo. Ichigo has such a similar warmth to Kaien-dono, but Ichigo's warmth is more like radiating heat. It's like he is a piece of the sun itself.

"Give me one minute, and then we can rejoin the party." Ichigo says, standing and heading for her bathroom. Rukia nods and sits on the bed waiting for him. He looked like he was worried that she was happier here in Soul Society than the living world.

"Sometimes I forget he's so young and naïve." Rukia mutters to herself. Sometimes he seems so mature, so beyond his years, and other times he acts like a typical teenage human boy. The fact that he thinks so highly of her though, makes her very happy. She smiles, thinking of Ichigo until he reappears in front of her.

"Ready?" Ichigo asks her, as he finishes the drink she had handed him.

"Sure, lets go." Rukia says, starting for the door. Ichigo joins her and they head back for the party. Once there, they walk around mingling with people and Ichigo nearly jumps out of his skin when Matsumoto throws one arm around his shoulder and her other around Rukia.

"Hi you two! Are you having fun?" Matsumoto asks with a drunken laugh. Rukia smiles at her and Ichigo looks at her apprehensively.

"Hi, Rangiku-san!" Rukia says smiling at her drunk friend.

"I saw you walk in earlier but I was a bit tied up to say hello." Matsumoto continues as she pulls both of them into her sides. Ichigo starts struggling to get away, .

"Let go of me!" Ichigo says, feeling extremely uncomfortable.

"It's a party! Don't forget to have fun!" Matsumoto orders before letting him go and putting her hand on his head, ruffling his hair. Ichigo doesn't like that at all.

"Would you quit touching me?" Ichigo mutters as he steps out of her reach. Rukia laughs and Matsumoto grins at her.

"That's the first time a man has ever said that to me." She says to Rukia and she turns to Ichigo and winks at him. Ichigo blushes.

"We were just heading over to get more drinks." Rukia explains. Matsumoto lets go and shoves her towards the bar area.

"Good idea. _Someone_ needs to mellow out and have some fun!" She says, giving a pointed look at Ichigo.

"Shut up." Ichigo snaps at her. Matsumoto and Rukia laugh.

"Come on, Ichigo." Rukia says, still smiling. He stays out of Matsumoto's reach as he goes to stand next to Rukia. He's a little surprised when Rukia links her arm through his and smiles up at him brightly. He nods his agreement and allows her to lead him over to get another drink. As they're getting drinks they hear Matsumoto shouting in the crowd.

"When are we going to start the dancing?" She shouts as she holds a drink in the air. A bunch of people cheer and Ichigo rolls his eyes at her outburst. Rukia looks up at him she lets go of his arm and smiles at him.

"I think she's about to get the dancing started. You interested?" Rukia asks him with a sip of her drink.

"I would rather not. I've never really danced much before." Ichigo says, feeling his face redden a bit.

"Okay. Want to go for a walk outside or something?" She asks Ichigo, noticing that he is very conscious of people watching him. Ichigo's eyes light up happily.

"Sure." Ichigo says, nodding his head. She walks him to the back of the division.

"I can give you a tour of the Thirteenth Division's training grounds." Rukia explains, as Ichigo steps next to her.

"Cool. So this is where you trained at?" He asks her softly, happy to learn more about the woman he spends so much of his time with.

"Partly. I trained in more remote areas as well, but if you follow me over here," Rukia motions as she flash steps to the building nearest to the main one where the party is at. She waits for Ichigo to join her. He's there less than a second later. "This is our dojo." Rukia say as she opens the door. They step inside. Rukia watches Ichigo's expression as they enter. His eyes widen and he smiles.

"This is really nice." Ichigo says, looking at the dojo.

"I developed a few of my techniques here," Rukia says proudly. Ichigo looks at her and smiles.

"Maybe after you show me around your division, I can show you where I trained for my bankai." Ichigo grins as Rukia looks up at him surprised.

"Really? I'd be interested to see that!" Rukia says, still smiling. She pulls him out of the dojo and quickly takes him through the rest of the division, including the barracks for the lower level Shinigami. Once she's finished showing him everything of interest, she faces him and looks at him expectantly. Ichigo looks back at her and grins.

"What?" He asks her.

"Please show me where you trained for your bankai. I'd really like to see it." Rukia explains happily. Ichigo nods his head and grins. Before Rukia knows what's happening, he's swept her up into his arms and her drink pitches to the ground and shatters. She doesn't hear it though because Ichigo's already taking off at high speed to lead her to where Yoruichi trained him.

It doesn't take long before they arrive.

"This is it." Ichigo says and Rukia's mouth drops open as she notices the resemblance between Urahara's training area under his shop and this place.

"Wow." Rukia says. She can almost feel the power that's been released in the past here. Powerful warriors have trained here.

"Renji obtained his bankai here too." Ichigo says casually as he walks around and grins. "Man, this brings back some memories." Ichigo says as he yanks Zangetsu off his back. A moment later Zangetsu materializes in front of Rukia and Ichigo. Rukia's mouth drops wide open at the sight of Ichigo's materialized zanpakutou. For some reason this figure seems very familiar to her, even though she's positive she's never seen him before. He feels very much like Ichigo.

"Ichigo?" Rukia asks quietly. It's unheard of to materialize your sword like this in front of other Shinigami. Maybe Ichigo doesn't know that since he was training for his bankai at the same time as Renji. She wonders why Ichigo materialized his sword when she realizes his materialized sword is staring at her with fascination.

"You're right, it does bring back memories." Zangetsu says in a low voice that echoes around the area. He's still staring at Rukia, even though she can only clearly see one of his eyes. Rukia suddenly feels very nervous as she stares at his materialized sword. Finally she bows her head in respect.

"It's an honor to meet you." Rukia says softly to him. She's a bit surprised when she hears her own sword calling out to her in her mind. _I got close to him a while back_, she hears her zanpakutou say in her mind.

"Why have you called me out?" Zangetsu asks Ichigo, still staring at Rukia. Ichigo is starting to get annoyed with the old guy.

"Yo! I'm over here, I called you out because I wanted to give Rukia a demonstration of our training. Will you quit staring at her?" Ichigo asks in an annoyed voice. Zangetsu ignores Ichigo completely as he takes a step closer to Rukia.

"Is something wrong?" Rukia whispers as she stares at the mysterious figure in front of her. Ichigo closes his eyes and grabs his chest in surprise. With every step that Zangetsu takes closer to her he can visualize his inner world clearly. It gets sunnier and hotter with each centimeter that Zangetsu gets closer to Rukia.

"No. I must seem rude. It's just that this is the first time I've been able to look at you with my own two eyes. You are very important to us." Zangetsu says as he stares into Rukia's eyes. Ichigo blushes and straightens up and dashes over to Zangetsu.

"What are you doing?" Ichigo asks him furiously.

"We would be very pleased if you would take a seat and watch the demonstration. It seems Ichigo is ready." Zangetsu says, staring into her eyes for a couple more seconds before jumping away from her. Ichigo follows and Zangetsu materializes two swords from the ground.

"You talk too much, Ossan!" Ichigo growls in a low voice.

"You expect me to be silent when confronted with the woman who is the sole reason for our power?" Zangetsu says, surprised. Ichigo scowls at him and grimaces. _Rukia is not supposed to hear this stuff. He sure is casual about revealing private things to her._

"Shut up and fight!" Ichigo roars as he grabs a sword out of the ground.

"Very well." Zangetsu and Ichigo start fighting and Rukia is awed at the sight before her. She always knew Zangetsu was amazing, but she had no idea that he'd be able to freeze her still in her tracks with his very intense gaze. The blade of Ichigo's sword had seemed like he was very connected with her. She had actually trembled with the intensity the whole situation had brought to her entire soul. Ichigo and Zangetsu go at it for quite awhile before Ichigo calls it quits due to some gashes on his body. The materialized form of Zangetsu disappears as Ichigo jogs over to her.

"You two really go at it, don't you." Rukia says softly as she gets ready to heal him. Ichigo holds up his hand.

"You don't have to do that Rukia, check it out." Ichigo says as he leads her over to the spring that had healed his wounds when he'd trained for bankai. Rukia's eyes widen in surprise.

"A hot spring?" Rukia asks as Ichigo removes his robe.

"Yeah, it's an amazing hot spring. Wait until you see this." Ichigo says to her and motions for her to turn her back. She does and she hears him remove his pants quickly. She hears a splash. "Rukia!" Ichigo calls her name and Rukia turns around to see Ichigo splashing water on his chest. She watches as his wounds quickly start to close.

"That sure is convenient!" Rukia says with a chuckle. She removes her Shinigami sandals and socks and then pulls the legs of her Shinigami robes up around her thighs. She sits at the edge of the spring and sticks her feet in.

"Yeah. I think it's some kind of kidou." Ichigo says as he feels all of his wounds fade away.

"Yeah, I've never been in a hot spring that had the spell on it though." Rukia says as she takes a deep breath and closes her eyes at the pleasant feel of the warm water lapping around her ankles.

After Ichigo spends about ten minutes in the tub, he gets out and quickly gets dressed, his back to Rukia. He doesn't see it when she turns her head and peeks at his bare ass. Once he's dressed, he grabs her up again and takes her back to the party. They head inside to find most of the party goers to be drunk off their asses.

They immediately head over to grab some drinks. Ichigo worked up a bit of a thirst with his demonstration. He seems like he's loosened up quite a bit though and he is having more friendly conversations with the other Shinigami. An hour later, Rukia notices that Ichigo is starting to slur his words and so she pulls him in the direction of her room.

"Rukia. Sorry if Zangetsu made you feel weird." Ichigo says, giving her eyes a close inspection before sighing his breath in her face.

"He didn't make me feel weird at all. He made me feel important." Rukia admits as she guides Ichigo over to the bed.

"That's good. You should have already known that though." Ichigo says openly.

"It's nice to be reminded." Rukia replies softly, earning her a glance from Ichigo, who suddenly looks like he feels bad. He had seen the swift feeling of sadness and loneliness flash through her eyes.

"Sorry." Ichigo says, biting his lip. Rukia smiles at him.

"It's fine. You should really get some rest. I might have let you have one too many drinks. It's just that you seemed completely lucid when you were fighting Zangetsu. I didn't realize just how much you had to drink tonight." Rukia says softly as she walks towards the bathroom. Ichigo grins at her before rolling over to the wall on her bed.

"Good Night Rukia, thanks for everything." Ichigo says in a light voice before closing his eyes. She grins at his back.

"Good night, Ichigo." Rukia replies before going to fill her bathtub with water. She had been so tempted earlier to join Ichigo in the hot spring, but in the end, she'd never gained the courage to. She pulls off her robes while the tub is filling and she pours some bubble bath into the tub.

She climbs in, ready to relax. She closes her eyes and thinks about how nice the evening was. She was really affected by the piercing stare that Zangetsu gave her earlier. _He had said I was the sole reason for their power. Wow._

Rukia sinks a little lower in the bath as she contemplates what Ichigo means to her. _Only everything._ Rukia sighs. She may be much older than Ichigo, but she's just as inexperienced when it comes to relationships. Even though she always acted more like a guy, she had always viewed relationships with disgust.

Now she's in an unspoken relationship. She certainly doesn't have the strength to put her whole heart out on the line by saying what she feels. She is certain that Ichigo feels exactly the same way as her. She notices how he focuses on her and relies on her in a way that he doesn't with anybody else.

Rukia lets out a little sigh as her entire body feels warm from the bath. She steps out and puts on a pair of her own pajamas. A silk top and silk pants. She walks out into her room and sees Ichigo passed out, laying against the wall. Rukia smiles and walks softly over to the bed and climbs in beside him. She takes a deep breath as his reiatsu surrounds her in a comforting blanket.

Zangetsu and Sode No Shirayuki are leaning up against the wall next to the bed. Rukia smiles and turns towards Ichigo. She's used to feeling his reiatsu when she sleeps but now it's closer than it ever has been before, and it feels like it's enveloping her entire body, and seeping into her skin. Ichigo turns his body to face her and pulls her into his arms. Rukia slips her arm around his back and falls asleep with her every sense and inch of skin being warmed by Ichigo and his presence.

_The Next Morning_

Ichigo opens his eyes to feel his hand absently caressing some soft fabric. He doesn't remember ever feeling this rested and nice before. He opens his eyes and finds himself holding Rukia, tight in his arms, and his hand was caressing her back. She is wearing... something very soft and pleasant feeling and it seems he has been touching it. He immediately stops and freezes. He can't even move.

Rukia is here in bed with him. He sucks in a quick breath when her hand moves up and down on his back a bit before resting at the top of his butt. He feels his face heating up to a fiery temperature and he tries to untangle himself from her grasp.

Rukia wakes up when it feels like the warmth is getting away from her. She opens her eyes to find a very red faced Ichigo attempting to pull himself away from her.

"Why were we in bed together?" Ichigo asks as his voice squeaks from nervousness. Rukia sits up, stretches and then yawns. She opens her eyes and stares into his eyes with a small grin. He scowls, still bright red.

"Because I didn't make you sleep in _my_ closet." Rukia says in an amused voice before getting out of bed humming. Ichigo lets his head fall back against the pillow. He watches as she disappears in the bathroom and he clenches his fist.

_Why did it have to feel so right as I woke up? Why did I feel more comfortable in her arms than I've felt anywhere else in my entire life? Is this normal?_

Ichigo thinks about how his father still obsesses over his mother and is as in love with her now as he was when she was alive. Ichigo sighs in defeat. _Maybe it's normal in my family…when we fall in love._


	11. Destiny: Class Play

Ichigo stares out the window as the teacher is talking to the class, not really paying attention. The class would be participating in a school play. Ichigo might have been more interested if they were doing a rendition of Romeo and Juliet, but the class had decided against that play, saying it was too cliché.

Instead of doing Romeo and Juliet, a classic by all rights, they were going to do a different play. He didn't know that much about Greek mythology, but Rukia had suggested they do a play about it. The teacher had loved the idea of doing a play about Aphrodite, The Trojan prince Paris, and Helen of Sparta, as the main focus of the play.

Ichigo had tuned out until he'd become the one voted to play the Trojan Prince Paris. Rukia was immediately voted to be Helen of Sparta. Inoue ended up winning the vote to play Aphrodite. Kunieda was chosen to play Hera and Tatsuki were chosen to be Athena. The basic story was that Aphrodite, Hera, and Athena approach the Trojan prince Paris and ask him to choose which of the goddesses is the most beautiful.

Ichigo grits his teeth. He would love nothing more than to die and take his place in Soul Society right now. He can't think of a less favorable position for him to be in, being asked by three girls which is the most attractive.

The story then goes that Athena offers him victory in war to choose her, Hera offers him power, but Aphrodite offers him the love of the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Sparta, played by Rukia. Ichigo can tell he's got a blush on his face as the teacher describes the course of action that the play will take.

Paris and Helen elope causing the famous Trojan War where Aphrodite stays loyal to Paris and Athena and Hera are enemies of Troy in the war. Chad was playing Zeus, the supreme god, and also Hera's husband, and Aphrodite and Athena's father.

The play apparently wouldn't be going into the details of war itself, but they would do the fight between Menelaus and Paris, and just as Paris is about to get the finishing blow, Aphrodite saves Paris by swallowing him up in mist and transporting him to his own bed in Troy.

Aphrodite then goes to Helen in disguise and tells her that Paris is waiting for her, to which Helen who recognizes her, asks if she is yet again being led to ruin. She then wonders if Aphrodite wouldn't like to go to Paris herself, to which Aphrodite becomes furious and threatens Helen not to go too far unless she wants Aphrodite for an enemy as much as she's been a friend.

Helen acquiesces to Aphrodite and the play ends with Helen going to the bedside of Paris and leaning down over him. She looks into his face and leans down to kiss her husband. He awakens at her kiss and tells her she is the most beautiful woman in the world, and that he loves her.

Ichigo groans just thinking about it. He's going to say things to Rukia in a play in front of people he knows and strangers and tell her she's the most beautiful woman in the world, and tell her he loves her.

_This is fucked up._

Rukia is in much the same condition. She hadn't meant for her suggestion to cause _this_.

She doesn't even peek at Ichigo, she can feel his annoyance from her seat, and it's strong. Rukia glances at Inoue who doesn't exactly seem very pleased with the turn of events either.

Ichigo doesn't speak to a single person for the rest of the school day. He's really disturbed that the lines he'll be saying are word for word how he feels about her, corny as that sounds in his head. He can't do it. When class ends, Ichigo nearly lifts Rukia on her feet in his hurry to get away from the classroom.

"Erase their memories, Rukia. All of them. Tonight." Ichigo says, the urgency in his voice is apparent. "And when the teacher is discussing picking a play tomorrow, please do not suggest anything." Ichigo's eyes are pleading. Rukia doesn't mind. She wasn't exactly looking forward to an eloping scene with Ichigo and the end scene…she'd rather kiss him when there's not an audience, thank you very much.

"Okay." Rukia says it simply, feeling terrible about how uncomfortable she'd made Ichigo, Inoue, and her own self. Ichigo glances down and sees that she feels bad. He starts feeling bad for what he said now. Their classmates start shuffling out, but stop in interest at Ichigo and Rukia.

"Rukia-" Ichigo tries to console her, but he doesn't know what he should say. He looks at her and puts his hand on her arm in a comforting motion. "Sorry. To be honest-" Ichigo sweats. He can't tell her that the feelings of Paris for Helen are too close to his for her without sounding like a complete idiot.

Rukia sees how uncomfortable he suddenly is, and as she looks into his eyes, it becomes crystal clear to her, why he's so disturbed by the play. His hand is still on her arm, and so she reaches up and lays her opposing hand on his cheek.

"I understand, Ichigo. Thanks." Rukia says softly and simply, as the two just gaze into each other's eyes, still touching.

"You two are so cute!" Mizuiro's voice slashes through the moment like a knife through butter. Ichigo and Rukia flinch in surprise.

Ichigo and Rukia both drop their hand from the other and slowly turn to see all of their friends watching them. Ichigo and Rukia's faces are an identical shade of tomato red.

Rukia turns and runs towards Ichigo's house, and Ichigo is quick to follow. As they run as fast as they can and are far away enough from each other not to be heard, Ichigo shouts at Rukia.

"Make sure you use the memory modifier on ALL of them!" Ichigo is appalled that he was caught in such an affectionate moment with Rukia.

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Rukia screams back!

_The Next Day_

The entire class decided on Romeo and Juliet, and Ichigo was threatening to kill himself to Rukia by the end of the day since he got the part of Romeo and she got the part of Juliet. They finally decided to let Kon and Chappy play the roles for simple peace of mind and Ichigo's life.


	12. As Requested: Lemon

_As Requested: Lemon_

_At Inoue's Apartment_

Inoue looks at Rangiku-san who's planning on going back to Soul Society shortly. Matsumoto notices a bracelet on Inoue's counter and she asks Inoue what it is, since she can sense a strange spiritual pressure from it.

"It's what the espada gave me to hide my presence to everyone except them. They made me wear it. When I left Hueco Mundo, I kept it, since it was the one time I felt like Kurosaki-kun might care about me," Inoue says, sighing. "It allows me to pass through physical objects as I desire in the living world, I was unable to pass through the wall of the room Aizen had imprisoned me in though." Inoue says, looking at the bracelet.

"You shouldn't tell people about that ability! You're a good girl, Orihime. If I were you, with those feelings for Kurosaki, I'd have used that bracelet a long time ago to my advantage!" Matsumoto sings as she heads over to the table and grabs a candy bar.

"What?" Inoue asks, and blushes, as she remembers when she used that device in the living world last, she had very nearly stolen a kiss from Kurosaki-kun. "Would it be so bad if I used it again to see him?"

_In The Kurosaki Kitchen_

"Ichigo," Rukia says softly. His family's in the next room watching a dumb movie that they're all into. Ichigo looks at Rukia and flippantly replies.

"What?" Ichigo's completely unprepared for the next words to come out of her mouth.

"I have a problem, and I want your advice on how to deal with it." Rukia says to him very seriously. Ichigo knows it's not like her to ask for help with any problem. She's always pounded it into his head that she's a self sufficient woman and doesn't need him to take care of her. Ichigo gives her his undivided attention.

"What's the problem?" Ichigo asks, studying her carefully. Rukia seems nervous. "Tell me, I'll help you any way I can." Ichigo says encouragingly. Rukia gives him a sad smile.

"I hope so. This is not something I ever thought I would need to express, but I've been doing some research on my own, with the library and the internet, and it seems there is a specific order of events for humans, and if I want to get across the bridge I have to cross it by doing something I really have always been very afraid to do." Rukia tries to explain slowly without just blurting everything out. Ichigo scratches his head as he contemplates what she said.

"So in order to get something you want, you have to do something that you're afraid to do?" Ichigo asks, making sure he understands her situation.

"Yes." Rukia whispers. She stares into his eyes and he returns her stare as he thinks about what she said.

"Is what you want important enough to risk doing what you're afraid of?" Ichigo asks her softly.

"I believe with all my heart that it is, but that doesn't stop me from being afraid of what I have to do to get there." Rukia says in a depressed voice.

"The thing that you're afraid of doing, would it kill anybody? Is it morally wrong?" Ichigo asks next.

"No, it's just extremely scary…terrifying. It could inadvertently make me lose something that I value the most." Rukia says softly. "It's something I value more than my life that I could end up losing." Rukia gives Ichigo a pained look and he immediately feels awful for her.

"That sounds like a difficult decision to make. Is what you want _that _important?" Ichigo asks again.

"It is worth it, if I can get up the courage to do what scares me." Rukia whispers achingly. Ichigo leans closer to her with his arms on the table. He's only quiet for a moment, and then he looks at her carefully.

"Can you elaborate?" Ichigo finally asks. He watches as Rukia stands and paces silently for a minute. Finally she walks around the table until she's standing next to him. He sits back in his seat and looks up at her. He's a bit surprised when she sets a hand on his shoulder. He watches her face as she closes her eyes tight for a moment and then opens them to stare at him with her huge blue eyes showing her vulnerability.

"See, I'm actually pretty selfish. I have always been so content, but lately what I have isn't enough. I want more." Rukia says, and Ichigo gives her a confused look.

"You are _not_ selfish!" Ichigo says with conviction.

"Yes I am. It's because I want more." Rukia says as she squeezes his shoulder. Ichigo senses that she's extremely emotional right now and so he just contemplates her words for a second before disagreeing more strongly than before.

"You are not selfish. If you were, you would have never transferred your powers to me, so long ago." Ichigo answers her with his steely eyes telling her he won't allow her to convince him differently.

"Why can't I be happy with what I have then?" Rukia is practically wailing and Ichigo puts his hand to his lips and points towards his family in the next room.

"What is it that you want so badly? If it's this important to you, I can try to help." Ichigo says, wanting to see the sadness leave her eyes. She laughs, but the smile doesn't reach her eyes.

"Ironic that you would say that, because your help is actually necessary in this endeavor." Rukia says in a choked voice.

"Huh?" Ichigo asks, more confused than ever. His eyes widen a bit as she sets her other hand up against his cheek and takes the hand on his shoulder and puts it on the back of his head.

"You see, I can't have what I want or say what I want until I do the scary thing." Rukia says in a low voice as she lowers her head and stares directly into his eyes. Her face is fairly close to his, and Ichigo looks at her and breathes slowly. His heart starts to pound as she moves her hand on his cheek. He can't do anything other than stare into her eyes for a few seconds.

"Don't keep me in suspense," Ichigo says in a soft voice. Rukia looks away for a split second before bringing her gaze back to his. In front of his eyes, he watches as she goes from scared and uncertain to defiant and determined. He couldn't look away if he tried. Her gaze is making his throat dry.

"You're right. Dragging it out isn't helping at all. I love you Ichigo. I have loved you for a long time. Lately, I've grown to love you so much that I want to touch you, hold you, or even make love to you." Rukia's soft voice is sultry and Ichigo watches as her face draws closer.

"Rukia," Ichigo whispers because he can't do anything else. He feels her hand tightening on the back of his head, grabbing at his hair and she keeps caressing his cheek even as she comes closer.

"I've been dying to touch you like this for so long," Rukia tells him just before she drops down on his lap and brings her lips to his. Ichigo couldn't be more shocked. His eyes close and he wraps his arms around her as she kisses him with all the emotion she feels in her heart. He responds in kind. Everything he's been holding back, he gives her in this kiss.

"Rukia," Ichigo breathes heavily as their lips finally tear apart.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says it with a lot of emotion and when he looks into her eyes, he sees tears forming.

"Don't cry. You shouldn't have worried or called yourself selfish. I'm sorry you've been hurting so much because of me. I never wanted that to happen. You mean more to me than anyone," Ichigo says quietly in a heartfelt voice.

"I don't want you to give me anything that you don't want to give, though," Rukia says softly even as his arms tighten around her. She's still touching his hair, and she moves her hand from his cheek and traces his lips with her index finger.

"I want you as much as you want me. I love you as much as you love me. I want to touch you as much as you want to touch me." Ichigo whispers before pulling her back in for a kiss.

_Outside Inoue's Apartment_

"Come again soon, Rangiku-san!" Inoue says, waving as the woman goes through the gates that lead to Soul Society.

Inoue goes inside and stares at the bracelet the espada gave her. She takes a deep breath and she slips it on, and walks briskly to the Kurosaki residence.

She climbs up to Kurosaki-kun's window, and sighs in relief as the bracelet allows her into his room. It still works. She looks around and then sits at his desk, running her fingers over the books on his desk. She looks at the door when she hears footsteps approaching.

Ichigo walks into the bedroom carrying Rukia and Inoue quickly jumps up, concerned Kuchiki-san is injured. Neither Ichigo nor Rukia notice the sliding of his chair as she stands. She's taking a step, when Ichigo closes the door and then strides over to his bed and lays Rukia down in it. Inoue's mouth drops open when he falls into bed on top of her and starts kissing her.

Inoue goes to the door. She tries to go through, but can't, all of a sudden. _Why can't I pass through? Is it because deep down, I don't desire to? _Inoue's heart sinks as this truth crashes down on her. She turns back towards the bed and watches, stomach dropping, as Ichigo kisses Rukia's lips, her face, her neck, so lovingly and gently that it makes her ache.

"Rukia, thank you." Ichigo says it softly. Inoue stares at them in bed as Ichigo's hands run up and down Rukia's arms and he leans in and kisses her passionately.

"This is a nightmare." Inoue whispers as Ichigo starts pulling her dress down around her arms and when he hears the material ripping from stretching it around her arms, he yanks more forcefully until he's exposed her bra.

Inoue covers her mouth with her hand and sinks back onto the chair at his desk and puts her face down and starts to cry.

"Ichigo!" Rukia's voice sounds like she's very affected by his passionate kisses.

"Rukia, let me show you…how much I love you. Let me…" Ichigo stops talking as he pushes her bra out of his way and starts kissing her breasts. Rukia lets out a lusty sigh and Inoue can't help it. She looks at them again.

She's so jealous right now. She wants so much to be in Ichigo's arms with his lips pressing firmly all over her body. Saying those sweet words to her. Wanting her so much that he's ripping off her clothes. All of this is Rukia's, and Inoue just wants to trade places with her.

Rukia starts letting out little moans at the magic Ichigo is working with his mouth. Ichigo pulls back and starts yanking her dress down more. He finally gets it off and quickly removes his shirt. He leans back down to kiss her again. Inoue stares at his body, at the scars, at the muscles and she feels ashamed that can't look away from him.

Rukia moves her kisses from his mouth to his neck, and she lets her tongue twirl around his neck, and he calls her name out in desire as she runs her hands up and down his chest.

"I want you Ichigo. I feel like I'm on fire." Rukia whispers. Ichigo quickly hops out of bed and pulls off his pants and boxers. Inoue stares as he's close enough for her to touch him, but she doesn't dare.

"I want you too. Lets take these off." Ichigo says in a low voice as he removes Rukia's panties and climbs into bed with her. Rukia presses her naked body up against his and Ichigo lets out a turned on moan.

Inoue puts a hand on her chest. She has now seen him in all his glory, naked, and he's more perfect than she had even pictured in her dreams. She feels a wave of longing wash over her and she makes another attempt at going through the door. Once again she's unsuccessful.

Inoue leans up against the wall as she watches Ichigo and Rukia kiss each other hungrily, like they can't get enough of each other.

"God, Ichigo!" Rukia cries out when he moves his kisses from her mouth to her chest, then down, down, down, until he reaches her most sensitive area. Rukia grabs the pillow and presses it up to her face so that her moans are muffled. He still hears her sharp and passionate gasps of pleasure.

"You taste nice." Ichigo whispers as her body reacts to his tongue on it.

"Ichigo, come here." Rukia says in an aching voice. Ichigo moves his head up near hers and starts sucking on her earlobe. Rukia sucks in a hard breath. His legs are positioned in between hers and she can feel his hardness pushing into her stomach.

"I love you. More than anything or anyone, I love you." Ichigo whispers into her ear. Rukia's eyes fill with tears of happiness. She places a quick kiss on his cheek before answering.

"I love you too, Ichigo. I want you bad." Rukia says, as she runs her hand down his front and firmly takes hold of _his _most sensitive place. He gasps in pleasure at her touch. She marvels at the contrast of smooth and hard and runs her hands up and down, causing a sexy moan to emit from his lips.

"You make me feel so damn good." Ichigo says before leaning back a little and positioning himself to make love to her. Rukia looks up at him with love shining brightly in her eyes. Ichigo nearly comes undone. He can feel the love radiating from her entire being.

"Rukia!" Ichigo calls her name loudly with need as he starts to slip inside of her, warm and _really_ tight. "God, you're the most perfect woman!"

Inoue cries and slowly slides to the floor. She isn't looking anymore, just hearing is more than enough. She bawls as she realizes her dreams have been shattered right before her very eyes. She can feel their reiatsu mingling and even from her position on the floor, she can sense the loving feelings that are enveloping the room. She can smell the sex in the air.

"Ow!" Rukia cries out and digs her fingers into his arms, hard. Ichigo stops, mid-thrust, ignoring his body's natural instinct to push the rest of the way in. "That really hurt!" Rukia exclaims in a small voice.

"Rukia?" He asks her, worried. She's taking quick breaths. She looks up at him, and he sees the pain reflected in her eyes. He doesn't dare move, he stays completely still as she keeps breathing from the sharp pain of his entry. He watches as she gets calmer. "I'm sorry I hurt you," he whispers, feeling very guilty.

"I'm okay, Ichigo. Promise. Make love to me." Rukia demands softly, and that's all he needs to push himself the rest of the way in, moaning while he does so. He looks down at her in all her beauty and he thrusts into her again and again.

Rukia scores his back with her nails as he holds his body weight with one arm and rubs her nipples with the other. They both moan in pleasure, Rukia never imagined she could feel so good, so right being this close to him. The heat radiating from his body onto hers is making her a bit lightheaded.

"Rukia! You feel so good," Ichigo mutters as the waves of passion begin to wash over his body. "I'm going to-" Ichigo lets out a loud moan at the pleasure he's experiencing, he climaxes so suddenly he has no chance of even getting out of her. He closes his eyes at the intensity of the pleasure of making love to her. He pulls himself out of her and rolls over to her side and wraps his arms around her. He had no idea that it could be _this_ good.

"I love you so much," Rukia's soft voice reaches his ears and he smiles at her.

"Is it as much as I love you?" He asks her, with wonder in his eyes. Rukia giggles a little at his expression.

"More." Rukia replies as she places a kiss on his neck.

"Thanks." Ichigo whispers into her ear.

"For what?" Rukia asks him.

"For everything. For your love, for your confession, and for your touch. Now that you've given it all to me, I'm never going to let you go." Ichigo says in a resolute voice. "It would kill me if you took away the only light in my life. I'm going to keep you now that you've given yourself to me." Ichigo declares before climbing out of bed to go to the restroom and clean up.

"I wouldn't expect any less from the man I've fallen in love with," Rukia whispers. "Being in your arms and returning your love feels better than anything I've ever experienced before in my life." She pulls his cover up over her body and watches him grab a towel and leave the room. "I'd never give it up!"

Inoue's finally able to leave. She heads home, walking slow. It's time to let go. She wishes so badly that it'd been her in Ichigo's arms and not Rukia. She pulls the bracelet off angrily. She witnessed a very private moment, something that should have been theirs alone. _It's time to move on. Kurosaki-kun will never be mine._

"Rukia, are you sure you're okay" Ichigo asks in a concerned voice. He felt bad that he'd hurt her. Really bad since he'd felt nothing but pleasure.

"Don't worry about it. I'm just happy I got to experience something so wonderful with you. It's what I've been wanting but it far exceeded my expectations. I'm head over heels in love with you. Take care of my heart Ichigo." Rukia whispers as she stares into his eyes.

"I will with my life, because I love you." Ichigo whispers back before kissing her.

"Make love to me again." Rukia commands.

"Really?" Ichigo whispers before pulling the cover away from her body. He leans down to kiss her and he presses his body against hers, when his bedroom door flies open and his whole family stands there, looking at the couple entwined in each other's arms. Rukia screams.

"**Your Dad!**" She yelps.

"**Shit! Close the door!"** Ichigo roars at the top of his voice, causing Rukia to flinch underneath him.

Isshin quickly shuts the door, glad that their private parts had been pressed against each other so that the girls hadn't seen anything except them in each other's arms. He's shocked. He looks at Yuzu and Karin who look back up at him, both looking a little disturbed by what they just saw.

"We should probably always knock from now on." Karin says angrily before turning and stomping away.

"Were they-?" Yuzu starts to ask and Karin spins around mid-stomp to cut her off.

"Yes! Obviously we shouldn't barge in his room anymore. He's been telling us for ages. **Thanks a lot old man, I should've never had to see that**!" Karin yells.

"**Shut up**!" Ichigo's voice penetrates the door. "**Get away from my door**!" He roars.

"Come on, Yuzu, lets give your brother some privacy." Isshin says. Karin turns around and snarls at her father.

"You _think_?" Karin is officially in a bad mood.

Ichigo and Rukia stare at the door as it sounds like they've left.

"I don't even want to think about them. Ichigo, make me forget." Rukia orders in a bossy tone. Ichigo smiles into her big blue eyes.

"Gladly!" Ichigo claims her mouth again but tboth groan and pull away for a second to roll their eyes when they hear his father from clear downstairs.

"Nice going on becoming a man Ichigo, I'm so proud of you! Make sure you do it right!" Isshin's voice seems to be loud enough to carry throughout the neighborhood.

Ichigo grumbles angrily at his father's words before losing himself in Rukia again.


	13. Fears, Feelings, & Results

_Fears, Feelings, & Results_

Rukia and Ichigo were on their way into the school when Rukia's spirit phone rang. She and Ichigo stepped back outside, since it might be orders from Soul Society.

Ichigo looks unconcerned and impatient at first, but the moment he starts hearing her end of the conversation, he looks more and more concerned about the nature of the call.

"Hello?" Rukia answers her phone, curious to see what's going on. "Ni-sama?" Rukia says next, which is when Ichigo starts staring at her, "No! Renji is...really? Call me the minute you know something, please, Byakuya Ni-sama." Rukia hangs up her phone and tears start streaming down her face. Ichigo looks concerned and uncertain. After all, Rukia doesn't cry.

"Rukia, are you okay?" Ichigo asks, putting his hand on her back. Rukia looks up at him with tear filled eyes that openly show her fear and pain.

"Renji was..." Rukia sucks in a deep breath. It won't work, she's too upset to talk. Ichigo puts his hand on her back and starts to gently rub her in a comforting way. Rukia throws herself into his arms and starts crying into his chest. Ichigo's eyes widen and he wraps his arms around her as she cries her eyes out. They're already running late, even though the bell hasn't rung yet.

"Rukia, what on earth happened?" Ichigo asks in a gentle voice.

"It's R-R-Renji," Rukia stutters as she sniffles into his chest and keeps crying. Ichigo's arms tighten around her.

"What about Renji?" Ichigo asks, feeling a pit in his stomach.

"His reiatsu disappeared in America, where he was sent to kill a powerful hollow. Ni-sama says they still haven't found his body, and they've been searching for hours." Rukia finally cries out. Ichigo holds her tighter.

"Do you want to go back home?" Ichigo asks her in a gentle voice.

"Ichigo!" Rukia cries suddenly as she pulls away from his chest and looks up into his eyes. She pulls his head down to hers and she kisses him as passionately as she can. Ichigo's surprised but he tightens his hold around her and kisses her back. "I couldn't stand it if you disappeared without..." Rukia stops and kisses him again.

This time, Ichigo picks her up and she wraps her legs around his waist. Ichigo starts kissing her back as ferociously as she's kissing him. Neither one of them notice that they're in view of the school newspaper editing room, and that shots are being snapped of them for the front page of the next school paper. Ichigo spins around and pushes Rukia's back up against the tree, where they keep on necking, and they're rubbing their hands all over one another in longing and need.

"I can't lose you too, I just can't," Rukia says against his lips, as they both breathe heavily.

"I can't lose you either, life wouldn't feel right without you," Ichigo says breathlessly as he leans back in to kiss her some more.

"Ichigo!" Rukia murmurs, "I need you so much" She gasps as she breathes in between his long lasting and intimate kisses. Ichigo's hands start sliding up her legs and under her skirt and they're still kissing each other with want.

Rukia moans as he kisses her and he moans back at her. The warning bell rings, which causes them to pull apart and realize exactly what they were just doing and just how publicly they were doing it. Their faces both redden as they run to class, side by side. Rukia who is able to tell Ichigo, does so on their way to class.

"Renji's reiatsu has disappeared! He was sent to America to kill an extremely dangerous hollow and all of a sudden his reiatsu disappeared and Soul Society has been unable to locate him." Rukia's voice cracks as she explains and Ichigo grabs her hand.

"Don't lose hope yet! That guy is too stubborn to die easily!" Ichigo says giving her hand a squeeze.

"I'm so anxious to get an update now. Ni-sama is going to join the search if Renji isn't found by this evening." Rukia says, as she gently lets go of Ichigo's hand since they're nearly at the classroom.

Ichigo and Rukia get through the door just as the final bell rings and dash to their seats. The whole day during class, Rukia is obviously distracted and nervous. She can't stop fidgeting and she keeps looking at her spirit phone. Ichigo is starting to worry about her.

It's obvious that she's completely stressing herself out. At lunchtime, she runs up to the roof and Ichigo is on her tail. He too is wondering what the status if of the search for Renji. When she sees that she has not been updated, Rukia falls to her butt and covers her eyes with her hands, and lets the tears fall. Her oldest friend is missing, possibly dead.

She barely notices when Ichigo squats down and then sits behind her and wraps his arms around her from behind. She instinctively leans back into him and cries the entire lunch period. Ichigo lets her cry, and runs his hands through her hair as he tries to help her release her pain. She's too upset to return to class and so Ichigo decides to cut class for the afternoon with her.

He picks her up in his arms and runs her home as fast as he can. He sets her down on his bed and paces around. He wonders how in the hell Renji could get himself in this much trouble. Rukia is laying on his bed, weeping, which just isn't like her at all. He knows he needs to comfort her, but he's not sure what the right thing to do is. He finally, hesitantly sits down on the bed and puts his hand on her arm.

"Try to believe he is still alive. Don't mourn him unless he's actually gone." Ichigo says softly. Rukia turns and looks at him with tear filled eyes.

"His reiatsu has never disappeared before, not completely!" Rukia whispers in a scared voice.

"Don't give up hope yet. Have faith in your friend." Ichigo urges. Rukia sits up and hugs him tightly.

"Ichigo." Rukia holds on tightly, "Don't you go disappearing on me." Rukia whispers it so softly, Ichigo almost doesn't hear her.

"I'm the one who has to worry about that, not you. You're the one who could go back to Soul Society and abandon me any time you get the urge to." Ichigo whispers back.

"I could never disappear from your life for long." Rukia whispers quietly.

"Thank goodness for small miracles." Ichigo says back. Rukia gives him a tiny smile through her tears.

"You must think I don't feel it." Rukia says softly.

"What are you talking about?" Ichigo asks, his heart pounding.

"As connected as you feel to me, I feel it back every bit as strongly as you do." Rukia admits. "That's why I'm terrified of losing you." She breathes in his scent and feels a calm wash over her body.

"Don't say it." Ichigo says in a soft voice.

"I can't let another day go by in this painful silence. I need you more than you even know." Rukia says stubbornly.

"If you keep talking, I won't be able to stop myself from showing you just how much I..." Ichigo says, falling silent as he presses his lips up to her neck. She gasps at the touch. He pulls away and looks into her eyes with a fiercely intense look and Rukia can only stare back with her own tear filled eyes. He looks at her for a long moment before leaning in and pressing his lips to her own.

Rukia is surprised but she kisses him back. She places one hand on his neck as she gently caresses it, and her other hand on his chest. When he finally pulls away, he doesn't look ashamed or regretful. He pins her with another one of his intense stares as he waits for her to say or do something.

"Ichigo." Rukia whispers it and looks at his lips and then back into his eyes.

"Stop crying Rukia, I'll do anything to take those tears away. I can't stand to see you like this, it's not like you at all." Ichigo says softly. Rukia leans in and kisses him. She slides her hands under his shirt and runs her fingers slowly up from his abdomen to his chest. Ichigo lets out a soft moan at her touch, and his tongue starts moving around a little more energetically in her mouth.

Ichigo pulls back and stares at her as he runs his hand through her hair and wonders whether or not she'll regret all of this tomorrow. Rukia doesn't allow him any time to think though, she sits up very boldly places her hand right on his crotch, and Ichigo jumps at the contact.

"You're playing with fire," Ichigo warns her as he sits up and pulls her hand away from his private area. Rukia's response is to slide over into his lap and wrap her arms back around his neck. He looks at her with a lifted eyebrow, but he can see the tears are still there.

"You said you'd do anything to keep me from crying," Rukia whispers. She places a well aimed kiss at the side of his neck just below his ear and slides her tongue around in a circle on his bare skin which makes him lose all sensible thought left inside of his head.

He sucks his breath in quick at the feeling she's inducing to fly throughout his entire body. He suddenly notices that his hands are touching her all over. He didn't even know when he had started touching her like that, but it's like his hands have a mind of their own as he pulls her tucked blouse out from her skirt and starts unbuttoning her shirt.

She's still sliding her tongue around his neck and he feels an exhilarating moan come from his throat as he finally undoes the last button and opens her shirt in the front.

He feels his hands start sliding around on her bare skin, and he's amazed at how there isn't a spot on her body that he touches that isn't soft and smooth. He feels his fingers sliding the straps of her bra down, and he doesn't even have the ability to stop them because she has started nibbling on his ear, and he can't get her clothing off quick enough as she is driving him into an insane frenzy.

He's never felt anything like this come over his body. He's always been in control and disciplined. Not now. He has her skirt off in record time, not that he has any conscious recollection of exactly how he managed that. He hears a frustrated groan come from his mouth, and he wasn't even aware that he was making the sound until he realized Rukia's mouth was on his stomach now. He's trying to get her last article of clothing off, but he's stopped in his tracks when her tongue dips down directly under his bellybutton.

"Rukia!" Ichigo hears himself, but he's sure it doesn't sound like himself. He wonders for a second why she is able to make him feel a way he has never before felt in his life. Out of control. With every step further they progress, the more surprised he finds himself. He hadn't brought her home to do this. Did I? Ichigo questions his own thoughts and then he can't think at all. Somehow during his pointless thinking she relieved him of his clothing.

_How did that happen?_

That's his last thought as she starts doing something wonderful with her mouth. He clutches the sheets at the bed in a death grip and feels his eyes roll up into the back of his head.

Whatever she is doing it makes him feel euphoric on a level he hadn't known was possible. He hears himself moaning and is surprised once again. She pulls away suddenly and Ichigo's hands are on her panties in an instant. He feels himself question that but it's not as though he can dwell on it. After all, he wants her to have a taste of her own medicine, and see exactly what it's like to have a tongue on the most sensitive part of your body.

Ichigo is having this thought, but he's already in action before the thought is finished in his head, and he feels like his body is ahead of his mind, which is strange, because usually it's the other way around. He barely hears Rukia's moans, since her thighs are squeezing against the side of his head so tight that they're like ear plugs. He realizes that if he can hear her with her legs like that, she's probably being really loud. While he has this thought he suddenly goes into a frenzy with his tongue. His eyes widen as once again it feels like his body is ahead of him and quicker with the actions than he is when he thinks them.

He doesn't think he's ever tasted anything sweeter in his life.

He kisses her stomach, her chest and both of her breasts in the same frenzied manner that he's been kissing her for the past five minutes. Rukia is breathing so hard and letting out soft little moans with each breath she takes. She already feels completely ravished. Ichigo sits in between her legs and yanks her legs up as he positions himself for entry.

Rukia watches as he positions himself, as his gaze runs from her tummy slowly up to her chest, to her neck, to her lip, and then finally he looks her directly in the eye.

The moment he enters her, she's struck with the amazement that in the heat of passion, his eyes are yellow. She is more surprised at that then she is at the way he's making love to her. She can't stop looking into his eyes even as he pushes her legs up and back so that her ankles are next to her head. He thinks that the feeling of this is even greater than what he felt when she was using her mouth on him in that amazing way.

He isn't at all gentle. She feels like a tornado has taken control of her entire body, with the insane feelings coursing through each inch of her body. There is definitely pain at the rough way he's pulling himself in and out of her, but there also a magnificent pleasure that is far greater than the pain she feels.

She's shocked when he claps his hand over her mouth and then continues to make love to her at a speed that seems almost impossible. She realizes she must have been making too much noise, but she doesn't see how any noise she made could compare to the noises coming from the bed due to the stress Ichigo's putting on it.

He pulls out of her and lifts her into his arms and puts her back up against the wall. He lowers her down until he's sliding into her again. She wraps her legs loosely around him as he bounces her up and down so quickly and hard that she's screaming. If Isshin's home, there's no chance he hasn't heard them.

She hears a long and loud groan come from Ichigo and it seems he's finally slowing down. He lifts her up off of him and quickly strolls over to the bed and gently sets her down. She practically rolls her eyes. He sure didn't care how gentle he was a minute ago.

Ichigo sits on the bed and falls to his back and closes his eyes. What in the hell was that?

"Ichigo," Rukia says softly as she winces at the discomfort her body is in due to his rough love making.

"God Rukia." Ichigo mutters as he keeps his eyes covered. It's not like he hadn't felt every sensation, not like he hadn't wanted every bit of what happened to happen, but he had lost control. "I didn't hurt you did I?" Ichigo whispers.

"I'm okay." Rukia whispers back. "That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I've never seen your eyes turn yellow." Rukia says in an awed whisper. She doesn't notice Ichigo shoot into an alarmed sitting position because her spirit phone rings. Rukia grabs it, forgetting her pain at the moment.

Ichigo bites his lip as he watches her talk on the phone, but he isn't able to pay attention to her end of the conversation, because she said his eyes had been yellow. That means he had felt out of control because he was out of control. He is truly worried that he may have hurt her now. He looks at her arms, but there are no marks. He looks at her back, but it's still as beautifully perfect as it ever was. His eyes travel down to her legs and he almost chokes in anger at himself.

Her legs are bright red from him gripping them so tightly. He won't be surprised if she ends up with bruises.

She suddenly hangs up the phone and pulls the cover up over her body. Ichigo stares at her for a minute before remembering what the hell had caused all of this in the first place.

"Any news on Renji?" Ichigo asks after a moment.

"He's alive." Rukia says, feeling stupid for her earlier crying.

"Really?" Ichigo says, surprised. "Why did his reiatsu disappear?" Ichigo asks.

"He discovered an area of seki seki stone and that completely hid his reiatsu." Rukia mumbles feeling very dumb for her outburst earlier. Ichigo thinks it's for a different reason.

"I'm sorry." Ichigo whispers, feeling a huge wave of shame wash over himself. Rukia sits up and kisses him on the cheek.

"I feel stupid for crying so much today, I don't regret what I did with you. I love you Ichigo." Ichigo closes his eyes in pain and confusion. He can see his hollow giving him a creepy head nod. Ichigo feels pissed that the fucker would participate in something that should have been his and Rukia's alone. He hopes she doesn't hate him if she ever figures it out. He leaves the room to take a shower and Rukia tries to stretch out her sore body and rub away some of the pain.

She highly suspects that Ichigo was only partly present for their wild encounter. She stares at herself in the mirror and wonders if there is something wrong with her, since she wouldn't take back one passionate second of the encounter. She feels guilty that she can get any kind of enjoyment whatsoever from his hollow side, but no mask had appeared and that's how she knew Ichigo was there too, and that made it all okay.

She feels like it is her fault he has a hollow side in the first place and it is her duty to stick by Ichigo no matter what happens, not just out of guilt but out of love as well.

_The Next Day…_

Rukia and Ichigo walk into class acting like nothing happened until Keigo runs up to them and waves a newspaper in his face. "I didn't know you guys were a serious couple!"

Keigo screams and Ichigo punches him in the face. Rukia grabs the paper out of Keigo's hand as he lays there shaking and twitching from the pain. Rukia gasps when she sees the picture, and Ichigo's face turns so red it looks unnatural.

Pictured on the front cover of the school newspaper is a photo of Ichigo and Rukia passionately kissing, not only that but her legs were wrapped around his waist as he held her in place by keeping her up against the tree. Their eyes and mouths open up in mutual horror and realization.

"How are we going to deny this?" Rukia asks furiously, unaware that the whole class is silent, listening to them, and watching them.

"Hell if I know, **god damn it, can't we ever get a private moment**?" Ichigo roars before walking out of class. After a second of being stared at, Rukia chases after him as fast as her legs will carry her, red faced.


	14. Compatibility Test

Ichigo had always known his teacher was a strange one. The things she said sometimes were not things a teacher should say to her students. She was known for being extremely lenient with some students, (like Kurosaki Ichigo and Kuchiki Rukia) and being very difficult on others, (like Keigo) but basically she has a reputation for being a bit of an oddball.

Rukia seemed to like their quirky teacher, but today he felt his teacher was crossing some sort of ethical boundary. She had handed out questionnaires to the whole class and told them to fill them out. She had told them that the results of the test would determine who in class they were most compatible with.

Ichigo glares at the sheet in front of him. He notices everybody else is furiously filling out their papers, except Rukia. She seems to be carefully considering each question, as though she believes a test like this can be accurate. Ichigo lets out a loud frustrated sigh as he considers the first question. Favorite food. He knows Rukia loves cucumbers, but Ichigo decides to write down his own favorite. Chocolate.

Ichigo answers each question honestly, since he wonders who his compatibility will be highest with according to the teacher. After answering all thirty questions on the list, Ichigo flips his paper over and the teacher comes and collects it. He notices Rukia is still filling out her sheet, in fact it appears as though she's writing a small essay underneath the question and Ichigo wonders what on earth she's doing.

The teacher had announced a study time for anyone who was already finished with their test and so Ichigo decides to get a head start on his homework. He looks up at the clock ten minutes later, just as Rukia flips over her own test and glances back at him. Ichigo gives her a questioning glance, wondering why she'd had so much to write on the questionnaire, but she just shrugged as if to say it was necessary.

After class, Ichigo puts the whole thing out of his head as he goes to eat lunch with his friends. The wind is blowing more heavily than usual today, and several girls are outside, clutching their skirts to their legs to keep from exposing their panties. Ichigo doesn't see Rukia with his friends and so he decides to look for her. He finally finds her away from everybody in a tree.

Ichigo sits against the tree and pops his Shinigami form out of his body. He jumps up to the branch where Rukia sits and he joins her.

"What's up?" Ichigo asks, curious about her behavior. She glances over and sighs.

"Is your teacher truly capable of deciphering the compatibility of people?" Rukia asks dubiously. Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"I highly doubt it." Ichigo replies as he looks at her features. "I don't think a test can determine compatibility since it doesn't figure in attraction, temperament, or preferences." Ichigo says not believing for one instant that it could be right.

"The questionnaire asked about those things though." Rukia objects, earning a stare from Ichigo.

"What are you talking about?" Ichigo asks, he hadn't even been aware that those subjects had been on the questionnaire.

"Did you even read the questions?" Rukia asks in disbelief.

"Of course, I just didn't memorize them. I just don't recall any questions asking so specifically my preferences, my type or my temperament." Ichigo replies.

"The time it took you to fill it out was also taken into account." Rukia says, rolling her eyes. Ichigo had really managed to space out during the teacher's explanation.

Rukia had found it all very fascinating and had paid close attention. Rukia had been very interested to see who the teacher would calculate to be her most compatible mate.

The moment Ichigo and Rukia get home, her spirit phone starts beeping that there's a hollow, and it doesn't stop all evening long. Each time they kill one hollow another one appears, and for some reason, they don't stop for hours on end. By the time Ichigo and Rukia are able to go back home, it's well into the middle of the night and they're exhausted.

Rukia is so tired she doesn't go to the closet, she flops down onto the middle of Ichigo's floor. He can't leave her there and so her grabs her and sets her into bed before crawling in next to her and falling asleep before his head hits the pillow.

_The next day..._

Ichigo had somehow managed to forget the stupid compatibility test, probably due to his endless hollow killing last night, but he feels like clutching his head and letting out a loud frustrated moan when that's all anybody else can talk about before class starts.

He doesn't even want to think about the way rumors will fly when the results are given. He wonders if he should fake a stomach ache and go to the infirmary.

Ichigo rolls his eyes when he sees how anxious and excited Rukia is for the teacher to hand out the final results. Ichigo can feel his head start to pound and he lets out another annoyed groan, just as Inoue walks up to his desk.

"Good morning, Kurosaki-kun," Inoue says. Ichigo just jerks his head.

"Mornin." Ichigo grumbles, but doesn't look at her.

He really wishes the teacher hadn't come up with this compatibility quiz idea. Ichigo rubs his temples in aggravation. Rukia looks over at him and sighs at his irritation.

"Can't you lighten up?" She asks him, giving him the look. Ichigo snorts, and Rukia snaps a rubber band at his forehead. She watches in interest as his forehead pulses as he gets angrier and angrier in front of her eyes. She's amazed he can keep his silence. Perhaps he correctly suspects she has a second rubber band.

Rukia give him her biggest most fake smile she can whip up and his scowl deepens tenfold, causing Rukia to muffle some laugher. He keeps glaring at the back of her head.

_Bitch_. She seems to get great amusement out of tormenting him, particularly with that fake act she puts on when she's around people other than him. He spends another minute glaring at the back of her head until the teacher enters the room, and the room quickly becomes quieter than usual.

Ichigo rolls his eyes and turns his head towards the window. He starts thinking about how strange it was that so many hollows came out last night, he wonders if there was some sort of reason for the huge influx of hollows. He hopes it isn't like that again tonight. Ichigo yawns, thinking about how little sleep her got. Rukia hadn't been in bed when he'd woken up this morning, and he'd almost forgot that he'd fallen asleep with her until just now. He hadn't even minded that she was in his bed, that was unexpected. Maybe it's because she's so petite she just didn't get in his way.

Ichigo quickly glances over at Rukia, and he notices she is looking at him out of the corner of her eye. He raises his eyebrow, earlier rubber band incident forgotten.

He sees a small smile on her face and then he realizes that the teacher is giving each student their results. She just handed Tatsuki her results, and Ichigo is shocked to see Tatsuki blush at her results. Then her eyes raise slowly, and she looks right at Ichigo.

Ichigo quickly looks at where the teacher is at, avoiding Tatsuki's gaze. _Fuck. I hope her results aren't me._ Ichigo watches as Sado gets his results, and he doesn't react, as expected. Ichigo glances back at Rukia who seems excited and happy since she doesn't have much longer to wait.

Ichigo has to consciously remember to smile as she starts to get antsy in her seat. Sometimes she's like a little kid, and it's endearing as much as it's infuriating. He doesn't like to encourage that kind of behavior, no matter how cute she is when acting that way at times. He doesn't want her thinking he's as easy to manipulate as his dumb classmates. He is blissfully unaware that she finds it easier to manipulate him than anybody else.

Ichigo is really annoyed with himself now, because he just was thinking the bitch was cute. The teacher reaches the person occupying his mind and hands Rukia her results. Ichigo watches, extremely curious. He's more curious about her results than he is about his own.

Ichigo feels his heart speed up when she turns and looks back at him with very red cheeks. Ichigo feels a rush of adrenaline run through his body at the thought that her results were actually him. If that were the case then he might have to rethink the accuracy of his teacher's results.

Ichigo is so busy pondering that thought that when the teacher lays his results on his desk, he doesn't immediately look at them. His stomach feels like it's doing acrobats inside of his body, just because he's sure Rukia's results are 100 Kurosaki Ichigo. Ichigo smiles his first true smile of the day, and then he notices that Rukia is staring at him anxiously.

_She must want to know what my results are_, Ichigo thinks, still smiling. He turns his head down to his own paper.

**99 compatible with Kuchiki Rukia**

Ichigo isn't really surprised. He holds his results out for Rukia to look at, not even realizing that most of the class saw him do this since everyone is being pretty silent. He hears the teacher laugh, and he turns his head to find the teacher staring at him, and Ichigo feels his face heat up. Rukia also looks very embarrassed.

Ichigo holds his breath as the teacher clears her throat and then addresses him loudly.

"Kurosaki, would you like to share your results with the entire class?" She asks. Ichigo shakes his head no, but then Mizuiro speaks up.

"He already did, he ended up with Kuchiki," Mizuiro sounds very amused, and Ichigo would like to choke him. The teacher hands Inoue her own results and Ichigo faces forward as he considers skipping the rest of the day to recover from his embarrassment. The teacher finishes passing out results and stands at the front of the class.

"I found the results very interesting. Keep in mind that the person you are most compatible with may not be most compatible with you. There are a couple of people in this class who were compatible with more than one person. Your results reflect the person you are most compatible with though." The teacher says before sitting down and watching the fireworks. The class begins to buzz with noise. Ichigo catches Rukia's eye.

"You got me, didn't you?" Ichigo asks. Rukia thinks he looks so cute when he looks at her like that.

"You have to ask?" Rukia says, raising her eyebrow.

"Yes." Ichigo immediately answers. Rukia smiles and nods her head yes.

"One hundred percent I got you." Rukia says softly enough for only him to hear. Ichigo grins.

"I admit I no longer doubt the accuracy of the teacher's results." Ichigo says a bit sheepishly. They aren't able to enjoy their conversation though because Inoue and Tatsuki are arguing and that has never happened before.

"Why won't you show me, Tatsuki-chan?" Inoue asks, hurt.

"I just don't want to!" Tatsuki replies in a firm voice.

"Why, I showed you mine!" Inoue replies. Most of the class is staring.

"That's why I'm not showing you mine!" Tatsuki says with a blush.

"You got the same person as me, didn't you?" Inoue practically whispers, but everyone hears it. Tatsuki shakes her head and shoots an angry look at Inoue, causing the whole class to gasp.

"I'm embarrassed by my results, that's why! It's not my fault you showed me your results before I could tell you that I wasn't showing mine to anyone!" Tatsuki says in a low voice.

The teacher considers telling them that it isn't private, and that she could easily announce each person's results if she wanted to, but she looks around and thinks maybe a few of her students don't want their results made public, even if Kurosaki didn't care about his being known.

Inoue walks back to her seat, her head down in embarrassment. Rukia feels a little bit bad for her.

"Kuchiki-san! I'm eighty percent compatible with you!" Keigo calls out loudly.

"I didn't get you," Rukia responds, causing Keigo to break down in tears. Ichigo shakes his head. Keigo is a bit too dramatic at times.

The whole rest of the day is filled with talk about the compatibility results. Through her investigation, Rukia finds out that five girls got Ichigo, and she's positive that he isn't that compatible with that many girls. As much as she hates to admit it, she wonders about the legitimacy of the results.

Rukia waits after class to approach the teacher, forgetting that Ichigo waits for her to walk home. Ichigo is standing in the hall when he hears Rukia confront the teacher. He is pretty sure he just saw Inoue crying, but he doesn't involve himself with it. He prefers to stay far away from crying girls.

"Sensei, how is it possible that five girls besides me also ended up with Kurosaki-kun as their result? I find it difficult to believe he's the number one result for that many girls." Rukia says, hating that she has to say it. The teacher's eyes widen and she nods her head appreciatively at Rukia. Ichigo's eyes widen too, five girls besides Rukia had gotten him? That makes him very uncomfortable. He only wanted Rukia getting him.

"You are very astute. I'm honestly shocked beyond belief that you are questioning it, since the results of the test are designed to be the person you most want to be with, and not the person you're most compatible with. You understand now don't you?" The teacher asks her, and Rukia feels a huge smile coming on.

"That means Kurosaki-kun wanted to be with me the most?" Rukia asks, her voice squeaking a tiny bit. The teacher gives her a strange look.

"For someone who is so perceptive, I'm confused with your surprise." The teacher looks at her like she lost her mind. Rukia nods her head, she understands.

Ichigo is doubled over in the hallway. He cannot believe what the teacher just revealed about that stupid compatibility test. Worse, now she knows he wanted to get her. His only silver lining is that she wanted him too.

The person she most wants to be with is Ichigo, and the person he most wants to be with is her., Rukia couldn't be happier.

In the end there were a lot of broken hearts in the classroom though. The only two _really_ happy people were Ichigo and Rukia.


	15. What She Wore

_What She Wore_

Ichigo swore that he was not going to pay attention to her.

He has a ton of homework to do and he warned her he'd only stop for hollows or an emergency. The warning alarm going off in Ichigo's brain seems quite like an emergency, as Rukia emerges from Ichigo's closet in an outfit that barely covers her private parts.

She has on a black net see through shirt with a black bra on underneath, and a black leather skirt that is so short, you're certain you can see the curve of her rear every time she takes a step. Ichigo guffaws.

"What in the hell are you wearing?" His voice squeaks as she pulls out a pair of black stiletto heels.

"Oh, you like?" Rukia says in a breezy voice like she hasn't a care in the world.

"Why are you wearing that?" Ichigo asks next, trying to maintain some calm.

"You don't want to know," Rukia says in a near groan.

Ichigo sets down his pen. Like he can really concentrate on his homework now. Ichigo watches and winces as she bends over to set her heels down and then puts them on. Her skirt raises even higher in the back and he can't look away as he gets a glimpse of some sexy looking black panties. His fingers are itching to touch her, but he doesn't dare.

"Where are you going while wearing that?" Ichigo asks next, starting to feel a high level of concern.

"Nowhere. I was playing truth or dare with the girls at lunch, since I couldn't find you, and that's why I had to go shopping with some of the girls after school. I'm supposed to hang around you all evening, wearing this." Rukia explains as though it's no big deal. Ichigo audibly gulps.

"Don't you feel exposed wearing that?" Ichigo asks, homework forgotten.

"Maybe I would if I were in a crowd, but I'm glad it's just you and me. I feel comfortable enough around you to be without any clothing at all." Rukia says nonchalantly. Ichigo swallows and then chokes on his own saliva.

"So you were dared to wear that." Ichigo says, wondering how on earth he's going to get through the evening.

"Well, actually there's nine more dares wrapped up in tonight. I'm lucky lunch ended when it did, or they wouldn't have stopped daring me to do stuff." Rukia admits with a sigh.

"Why didn't you just pick truth?" Ichigo asks logically. Rukia rolls her eyes at him.

"Because there's only one truth they want out of me, and I didn't want to have to answer that." Rukia explains quietly. Ichigo gulps again.

"Nine more dares?" Ichigo whispers in a barely audible voice. Rukia looks at him and smiles.

"Yep!" She says it cheerfully. Ichigo contemplates for a moment.

"Are you going to tell me what they are ahead of time?" He asks, wondering if she'll prepare him. Rukia snorts.

"Where would be the fun in that?" Rukia asks with a raised eyebrow. Ichigo raises his right back at her.

"So this is fun for you?" Ichigo probes, feeling a tingling in his body. Rukia smiles and nods at him, and Ichigo finally tears his gaze away from her to look at his huge stack of homework. He can feel her approaching him, and he keeps his eyes off of her as she stands right next to him in her scandalous outfit.

"Worried about the evil little minds our female classmates have?" Rukia says softly into his ear, causing him to jump a little. He attempts to give her a glare, but he finds it impossible. Instead he just glances at her with a startled wide eyed look as he backs away a couple of inches.

"A little bit. Was that one of your dares?" Ichigo asks, hoping it was. She smiles and shakes her head no. He was afraid of that.

"Want me to complete the first of nine?" Rukia asks as she pokes his arm.

"I want you to complete them all as quickly as possible before you give me a heart attack." Ichigo states in a strained voice. Rukia laughs.

"You don't have pre-existing heart conditions, so the likelihood of that is slim to none." Rukia says, enjoying his obvious discomfort.

"Since when are you a doctor?" Ichigo asks.

"I'm not, but I am a Shinigami. I've never met a teenager that died from a heart attack." Rukia states calmly, and Ichigo hates that she always has an answer for everything.

He hates himself for not demanding she change into regular clothes, and he really hates himself for continuously peeking at her out of the corner of his eye. His mind feels all jumbled and he isn't thinking straight, all because of what she's wearing. Rukia should only wear outfits like this in his fantasies, and not be prancing around his room looking like she's ready for a dirty magazine photo shoot.

"Whatever." Ichigo finally says, since he forgot what they were talking about in the first place.

"Ichigo," Rukia says, "please turn around in your chair." Ichigo looks up at her and feels himself blushing as he reluctantly spins his chair around and regains his seat.

The moment he's comfortable, Rukia drops into his lap. Ichigo sucks his breath in quickly as she looks at him and puts her arms around his neck. He just stares at her, dumbfounded as she leans forward and places a kiss on his lips.

Ichigo isn't sure whether or not he should respond, after all it's not like she's doing this because she wants to, but then she said it would be fun.

Ichigo is just starting to kiss her back when his father enters his room without knocking, he was holding a box which he immediately drops on his own foot at the sight of Ichigo with a scantily dressed, beautiful, black haired, tiny woman on his lap. Ichigo quickly pulls back from Rukia and feels his face turn redder than red.

"Oh my god!" Isshin yelps as he hastily exits the room. "Good going son! I'm so proud!"

"Shut up!" Ichigo yells at his dad. "Oh my god." Ichigo mutters as he shakes his head. Rukia laughs.

"He'll get over it. Aren't you glad the first dare is already over with?" Rukia asks. Ichigo blanches at the thought of eight more dares to come. He realizes his breathing is a little heavy from the excitement of her being on his lap.

"I'm dreading the next time I have to meet my father's eyes." Ichigo grumbles at her. Rukia grins and jumps off his lap and takes his hand.

"Come with me over here for the second dare. This is to prove that I went through with the dares." Rukia explains as she drags him over to the window and then leaps up and wraps her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck, holding on tight.

Ichigo wasn't expecting it and he lets out a big gust of air from it all. She's face to face with him, and she kisses him again. Ichigo puts his arms around her to help hold her in place and he kisses her back this time, since he's sure his father won't appear this time. Instead, there are shouts and cheers from outside. Ichigo looks, but it's dark and he can't see anything.

"What was that?" Ichigo asks as he sets her down and peers outside.

"Fool! I told you I was proving that I went through with the dares! That was a two in one dare! I had to jump on you as the first part, and kiss you as the second part in front of the window." Rukia explains. Ichigo feels dread in his stomach.

"Who is out there?" He whispers. "Probably three or four girls from your class." Rukia says, causing Ichigo to swear under his breath.

"You're the one who thought this would be fun, are you having fun yet Rukia?" Ichigo asks in a loud voice. His eyes widen when he hears a horrified gasp on the other side of the door. Ichigo stomps over and flings the door open, only to have his father fall on the floor from eavesdropping at the door.

"What?" Rukia asks, startled.

"Get out of here old man!" Ichigo kicks his father a few times and Isshin scurries away. "I feel like my life is on display," Ichigo mutters as he slams his door as hard as he can. Rukia smiles from his temper tantrum and hurries on to dare number four. To grab Ichigo's butt cheeks with both hands and give it a good solid squeeze. Now's the perfect time since he's glaring at his bedroom door.

Ichigo suddenly feels his butt being squeezed and he lets out a squeak in surprise. He turns his head real quick to glare at Rukia and she smiles sweetly back. He's never been touched that way before, he hadn't expected it but he had liked it. Ichigo sighs.

"You are really miserable right now, aren't you?" Rukia asks in a strange voice. Ichigo looks over at her and feels pain from how her looks affect his body.

"In some ways yes. In other ways, no." Ichigo responds honestly. Rukia's eyes widen.

"In what ways aren't you miserable?" Rukia asks softly. Ichigo snorts.

"When a gorgeous girl is in your room, making moves, it's hard to be miserable. Yet we're being walked in on, watched, listened to, and it's all because of a stupid game between some juvenile teenage girls. I'm miserable because you're doing this on a dare, and not because you want to be doing it. The Rukia I thought I knew would only do this if she wanted to." Ichigo says, shooting her a look. He's surprised to see she's wearing a really guilty look.

"You just called me gorgeous." Rukia whispers at first. He squeezes his eyes shut and tries to maintain patience.

"Rukia, can you just stop now. I've been distracted enough for one night." Ichigo says, not sure if he can handle much more. Rukia comes over and hugs him gently.

"Just bare with it, Ichigo, it will be over soon." Rukia promises. She lets him go and stands back from him. Ichigo sighs again and closes his eyes as he awaits her next move. When he opens his eyes, she's dropping into the splits for dare number five. It's amazingly hot. Ichigo fights the urge to grab his responding male parts in reaction to her move.

Rukia smiles proudly at him as she stands back up. She pulls his shirt up and starts rubbing his back for dare number six. She rubs all the way up to his shoulders and he lets out a pleasured sigh.

"Whoever proposed this dare, they must be the nicest one." Ichigo says, causing Rukia to giggle. When she finishes with that, she's prepared to move onto number seven. She removes the see through shirt so that she's in her bra, skirt, panties, and heels, and Ichigo just looks nervous as she turns and looks at him.

For dare number eight she has to push him onto his back and kiss him, and dare number nine is to grab his crotch. She just does it all at once, she pushes him back onto his bed, crushes her lips to his and grabs him in the crotch as she kisses him, causing him to moan. When she finally pulls away, she grins at him. Ichigo watches as she hops into the closet and exits in her school uniform.

"I'm supposed to meet the girls on my way home. So I have to pretend to leave here for a bit. I'll be back soon!" Rukia says before jumping out of the window.

Ichigo ends up pleasuring himself while she's gone so that he can finally concentrate on school work.

The next day at lunch time, the girls all start laughing when Ichigo comes and drags Rukia with him for lunch.

"You're eating with me!" He had announced, causing Tatsuki to come up to him and ask him in s quiet and sly voice. "Did you really like our five dares?" She whispers it into his ear and Ichigo's face goes red as he remembers what he had said about her sixth dare.

Rukia spends her whole lunch period being chased by an irate Ichigo who screams at her for lying to him. Rukia just giggles and only lets herself be caught when nobody's around to see them.

"Don't be mad, Ichigo. I just couldn't tell you that I wanted to try out some of my own ideas, it would have been so embarrassing!" Rukia says, giving him an I'm sorry kiss.

"I'll only forgive you under one condition!" Ichigo says in an angry voice.

"What?" Rukia asks.

"You repeat your own ideas tonight!" Ichigo says with a smile appearing on his face.

"Deal!" Rukia says happily.


	16. Carved Into The Heart

_Carved Into The Heart_

Ichigo's Thoughts

_She's sitting on the bed reading, again. _

Ichigo sighs and wonders what his future in ten years will be like. He stares at the slip of a girl who can kick his ass in two seconds flat. Whenever he tries to picture life without her, he has such a bleak view. When she's not around, it feels like an important piece of himself is missing. She's been carved deep into his heart. He thinks that might have happened when she impaled him with her sword. It had to be, because he let her in so easily, he figures soul blade to heart contact has a pretty enormous effect on both parties involved.

_She hasn't even noticed me._

When she isn't there, he pictures her to be there, which just makes the empty feeling that much more painful. When she isn't there, it feels like a dream state only it's not a good dream at all. Life is only real when she's kicking him, punching him, forcing him to look at her terrible drawings, and generally keeping his ass in gear. He knows it's real when she clobbers him, and even though her touch isn't gentle, she's still touching him, which makes every clobber a bit of a victory for him.

_She acts like she doesn't have a care in the world._

Unless she's in battle, then she worries for everyone around her, in particular, Ichigo. He's noticed. He never mentions it out loud either, because then they would be forced to confront the facts. He's just as protective of her as she is of him, and she doesn't say very much about it either, unless she feels he's acting overly protective. Then she reminds him she's strong and doesn't need to be constantly watched and protected.

_She's been talking to me less lately._

When she's awake she barely pays attention to him lately unless there's a hollow around. When that happens, she's the same protective girl she's always been when they fight together. He finds it disturbing that it takes a hollow to bring her regular personality out. Lately, she's been acting as cold as her weapon.

_She's got something on her mind._

Ichigo doesn't know what it is, nor does he know if he wants to know what it is, but she's definitely been deep in thought about something for the past couple of weeks. She's been so distracted during regular life activities that she still hasn't noticed him standing right here, ten feet from her, even though his spiritual power is releasing at a high rate due to his own thoughts.

He has spent a lot of time lately staring at her, wondering when things will get back to normal. It's almost like she's trying to be invisible until it's time to work. Ichigo wonders if that's the case. He wonders if he should do something that's sure to make her react. He decides to take his chances and he slowly advances towards Rukia.

Rukia's Thoughts

_He's standing there again_.

Rukia does her best to pretend like she's involved in what she's reading, but it's hard when all she can think about is him. He's been looking at her a lot lately and saying nothing. She wonders if she is holding back his life, but then she remembers how when she went back to Soul Society and then kept an eye on him from there, and when she did that, he lived the exact same life with no other changes besides the fact that she was no longer at his side. She had hated every minute they were apart. He's been carved deep into her heart.

_His eyes are on me, and I can feel it like he's staring into the depths of my soul._

He didn't try to date any normal human girls when she had left him alone. He had in fact lost the will to be a Shinigami in her absence, and had dropped into a great depression that didn't go away until she came back. She had seen it with her own two eyes, that her presence directly affects his well being. It had touched her so much that she had to tell him something that would touch him too. She had given him a pep talk in which she had included the words that she keeps him in her heart. He had turned his act around in an instant. She smiles when she remembers how much she secretly enjoyed riding on his back with his hands on her legs.

_His hasn't stopped watching me._

She wonders why she herself doesn't truly feel at peace unless she's in his presence. Even when she's unsure and worried like she is now, there's a calmness within her heart that is only around when Ichigo is around. She wonders how she let him steal her heart so easily, since she can easily say it belongs to him. She feels like any words she says to him right now will have her love laced in her tone, so she's been speaking less and less lately. It appears to be bothering him too.

Rukia wishes she could get a hold of herself, she isn't going to be able to keep her routine up much longer, Ichigo is obviously distressed by her behavior from the way he's leaking a lot more reiatsu than usual. She can't function when she's not with him, and she can't control her thoughts when she is with him. It's a difficult predicament to be in.

Rukia's thoughts stop as Ichigo approach her. He's so close. She puts down the book to look up at him, and she's struck speechless as she sees the concern in his face and the warmth in his eyes. She sucks in a quick breath when he leans in closer to her. She doesn't know what he's doing but she stays completely still as his face gets so close she can feel his breath on her skin.

Interaction

She looks at him with confusion in her eyes and then he clears it up for her. He kisses her, a long sweet loving kiss that is meant to melt away her quietly icy attitude.

"Stop treating me like a stranger, I want my partner back." Ichigo says against her lips before kissing her again. Rukia is shocked but she feels like whatever vice was squeezing her heart for the past couple of weeks is finally letting up on its grip.

"Ichigo?" Rukia looks at him, still with questions in her eyes. He grins at her and decides to get his point across so that there are no questions left in her mind. He kisses her again and then stares into her big eyes and speaks in a very serious voice.

"How far do I have to go before you take me seriously? I'll do whatever it takes." Ichigo's voice gets softer as he goes on, and Rukia's eyes widen.

"What do you mean?" Rukia asks him in a whisper.

"Tell me what I have to do to have you back to your old self. If you want me to prove my feelings for you then I can keep you here in this bed for a week straight, or I can marry you, or I can kill off my human body and be a resident of Soul Society if that's what you want. Damn it, Rukia, just tell me what you want to make things right, I'll do anything, I swear!" Ichigo finally grabs both of her arms and squeezes them as he finishes his speech.

Rukia can hardly speak. All because of her distance lately, he's ready to marry her to get her back to normal? She doesn't think he could possibly be any sweeter than he already is. She hates to see him so unsure of himself, and so desperate to make her happy. It's not like she's not happy, she's just been worrying about him.

"I love you so much, Ichigo. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you worry. I've just been worrying about whether or not I'm a positive part of your life or a hindrance. I feel selfish sometimes, staying here, occupying such a huge part of your life, and I wonder whether or not you resent it." Rukia admits, smiling a little bit for the boy who would do anything to see her smile.

"Rukia." Ichigo says it and stares into her eyes as he places his thumb on her chin and rubs it softly. "You are the best part of my life. Without you, my life is a huge pile of nothing, and that's how I feel." Ichigo whispers, before leaning in and kissing her again.

Their love for one another has finally been carved into both of their hearts, and that's when everything suddenly felt right in both of their inner worlds.


	17. Without You

_Without You_

Rukia looks at Ichigo, once she hangs up her spirit phone.

"It was Captain Ukitake," Rukia explains. "He wants to know how long I want to be assigned in Karakura Town." Rukia explains, looking directly at Ichigo.

"You can choose?" Ichigo asks in surprise, he had felt his stomach drop though at her words.

"No, not typically. This is considered a special circumstance that they're letting choose whether or not I want to remained stationed here in Karakura Town or if I want to go home." Rukia explains, watching Ichigo's face. He's watching her closely.

"What do you want to do?" Ichigo asks her, careful to keep his tone even.

"That depends. Would you have a problem with it if I stayed?" Rukia asks him, wondering what he thinks of it all.

"I'd have a problem with it if you left." Ichigo admits softly. Rukia's eyes widen slightly.

"So I'm not in the way of your life, in the way of your personal space?" Rukia asks, looking up into his eyes.

"It wouldn't feel right with you gone." Ichigo replies very quietly, but very earnestly.

"Aren't I in the way of your normal life?" Rukia asks in a soft whisper, feeling her heart jumping in happiness at his words.

"You're a huge part of my life, and I'm not happy when you're gone." Ichigo tells her in an aching voice.

"Really," Rukia asks. Ichigo nods his head yes.

"Please don't leave me again. It was hard enough to come back here without you once. Don't leave me alone again." Ichigo asks her as he pins her with a stare that shouts out that his emotions running high.

"If you're going to put it like that, then I guess I don't have a choice," Rukia says happily.

"I guess not." Ichigo says, just looking at her for a minute. He finally leans down and places a gentle kiss on her lips.

"Ichigo?" Rukia asks, her heart filled with happiness.

"I can't believe you would even have to ask what I want." Ichigo says huskily. "You've never been in the way." Ichigo tells her in a heartfelt voice.

"I'm glad!" Rukia says, turning her head away to blink away tears of happiness. Even though they're tears of happiness, she doesn't want Ichigo to see the tears in her eyes.

"Rukia," Ichigo says it softly, and waits for her to meet his eyes, which she does after a minute.

"Yes?" Rukia asks him.

"Am I in the way of your life?" Ichigo asks softly. Rukia blinks quickly.

"Never!" Rukia says it with conviction, leaving no room for argument.

"Then how can you think that you're in the way of my life? You mean as much to me as I do to you." Ichigo says.

Rukia throws her arms around him and hugs him tightly.

"Thank goodness," Rukia whispers as she holds him close.

"Without you…damn it Rukia, you'd better always stay here!" Ichigo says, his voice cracking with emotion.

"I'll never leave you, I swear. We'll always be together." Rukia assures him. Ichigo answers her by placing a long, loving, searing kiss on her lips, and then he looks into her beautiful blue eyes.

"I won't let you forget you said those words to me," Ichigo says before kissing her again. Rukia grabs on and holds on for dear life as she returns his passionate kiss.

_I'll never leave you, I love you far too much to do that._


	18. Locating Inoue

**A/N: This one shot is done before the manga or anime have Inoue being saved in Hueco Mundo. I just thought of this silly idea and I had to do it, so if you're reading this one shot after that happens, just keep in mind that I don't know if and how they save Inoue in Hueco Mundo as I write this one shot. Enjoy!**

**PS: This is supposed to take place right after the espada comes and takes Inoue in front of Kenpachi, Ichigo, Nel, and Yachiru and Aizen's announcement. **

_Locating Inoue_

Ichigo clenches his fists as he stares at the empty air that Inoue was occupying just minutes ago.

"Damn it! Will this ever end?" Ichigo belts out as Nel comes running over to hug him.

"Ichigo!" Nel cries out, happy he's still alive. Kenpachi looks pissed as he laughs.

"Aizen is so stupid! Like we're going to lose to a pussy like him!" Kenpachi grins as Yachiru lands on his shoulder. Seconds later, Rukia, and Byakuya shunpo in. Isane is running at a normal pace with Hanatarou since he can't flash step very well.

"Ichigo! Are you okay?" Rukia asks as she appears next to him. Ichigo's eyes widen. _She's okay!_

"Yeah, Inoue was here a minute ago but then an espada disappeared with her so quickly I think he teleported her out of here," Ichigo says angrily. "Aizen said tower number four, but how the hell do we know which one that is?"

"We can track her." Rukia says it confidently. "I know Inoue's reiatsu. I'll just do a binding spell." Rukia kneels on the ground.

"You can do that?" Ichigo says excitedly, watching her closely. Rukia nods and starts to draw on the ground. Ichigo's face turns pale white when he sees her start to draw, but he smartly keeps his mouth shut.

"Heart of the South, Eye of the North, Fingertip of the West, Heel of the East, Carry the Wind and gather, Banish the rain and disband, Way of binding fifty eight, Kakushi Tsuijaku!" Rukia waits for the signal to appear and she starts to sweat. "I need more spirit power," Rukia says softly as she's staring at her spell.

Nothing is coming up. Ichigo looks nervous, and he starts to panic.

"Now what are we going to do?" Ichigo looks nervous but then Rukia calls his name.

"Ichigo." Rukia whispers it, and Ichigo kneels down.

"Yeah?" Ichigo asks, getting nervous at the sweat she's dripping from using so much of her spirit power on the spell which is still in activation.

"I need your reiatsu." Rukia says softly.

"How do I give you that?" Ichigo asks. Yachiru grins.

"That's easy! You just got to be touching bodies!" Yachiru sings. Ichigo turns completely red. Rukia's face is tinged pink too despite her concentration on the spell. Ichigo stands behind Rukia and kneels down and gently puts his front against her back and he rests his hands on her shoulders. Yachiru giggles.

"Closer!" Yachiru sings, causing Kenpachi to laugh. Byakuya looks like he wants to Senbonzakura Ichigo's head off. Ichigo slides his arms around Rukia after Yachiru's command, and he clasps his hands together in front of her, not touching her with his hands. Yachiru jumps off of Kenpachi's shoulder and lands next to Ichigo.

"This is preposterous." Byakuya mutters as Yachiru screams in Ichigo's ear.

"You got to be touching her as much as you possibly can so that she can borrow your power. You're not giving it properly right now, she needs more. You got to hold her like a tornado is about to pull her into the air! Tighter!" Yachiru's voice is too loud to let him feel embarrassment.

He wraps his arms tightly around Rukia, rests his head against the back of hers, squeezes his thighs against hers and puts one hand on her stomach and the other over her heart.

"Take whatever you need, Rukia." Ichigo says, wondering what Byakuya's face looks like. Kenpachi and Yachiru are laughing, but Byakuya and Nel look pissed off.

"I've got her!" Rukia shouts out a minute later. She starts to jump up but Ichigo's still holding her tightly. She ends up falling backwards into him and lands in his arms on the ground since she managed to knock him off balance.

"Get your hands off my sister!" Byakuya says in a menacing voice. Ichigo quickly loosens his grip on Rukia who's as red as he is.

"We have to save Big Boobies!" Yachiru yells.

"Who?" Ichigo and Rukia ask in unison as she offers him a hand to help him up.

"Inoue Orihime!" Byakuya says in a near shout. He quickly stands between his sister and the offensive orange haired human that was just all over her.

"Oh yeah, Inoue!" Ichigo echoes, wondering how he forgot that.

"That's right!" Rukia says, wondering how she forgot that.

Must have had something to do with his body all over her. She doesn't even feel drained anymore, he had supplied her enough energy to finish the spell and feel like her spirit energy had been refilled. He has that effect on her.

They all flash step towards Inoue's location.


	19. Psychic

_Psychic_

"Come on, Ichigo, she's known for being accurate, she's not a fake!" Keigo yells into his ear. Ichigo highly wishes Rukia weren't in Soul Society right now, because if she was, he could make an excuse up to get out of this, but Mizuiro and Keigo are dragging him in to see the fortune teller anyways.

"I don't know what you're pushing me for, I will not hand over any of my money to a so-called psychic!" Ichigo argues as they drag him in the door. The psychic under discussion happens to be sitting within hearing distance of Ichigo's statement and takes a long look at him before nodding her head in understanding.

"So you are a skeptic," She asks in a soft voice. Ichigo looks at her and rolls her eyes. She's an elderly lady with a kind smile, but she gives him a strange vibe. She has on a pair of black pants with a flower print shirt with pockets, and she looks like an unusual lady. Her hair is dark, and her eyes are dark, but her skin is lily white.

"Yeah, I am." Ichigo answers her.

"If you come into my office alone, I can tell you personal information about yourself that nobody else besides you should know if you'd like me to prove my abilities," she offers. Ichigo considers it with an eyebrow raised.

"So if I'm unsatisfied with the personal information you provide, then you'll charge me nothing and not tell me of my fake future?" Ichigo asks wide eyed. He's never heard of anything like this before.

"If my reputation isn't good enough to suffice, then I'm happy to prove my talent before asking you to pay." The woman assures him.

"That's fair," Ichigo says, relenting. The woman motions him into her small office and shuts the door after he follows her in. She sits at a small table with tarot cards, a crystal ball, some small colored stones, and incense. The first thing she does is light the incense and then she stares into Ichigo's eyes. He's a little perturbed by it, but he manages to hold her gaze.

"How interesting, it seems you have supernatural powers yourself! You can see ghosts, the monsters that I refer to as heartless ghosts and also Angels of Death." The woman says first, causing Ichigo's right eyebrow to raise in surprise. "Hmm. Even more interesting. It seems you are very close to an Angel of Death. I also see you garbed as an Angel of Death, though that confuses me." The woman says, giving him a long hard look. "You spend a lot of time around this Angel of Death, in fact this angel saved your life did she not?" She asks as she closes her eyes and holds up a hand that tells him her question was rhetorical. "You're very close to this angel that saved your life, and your future concerning this angel can go one of two ways depending on your actions." The woman finishes and then looks at him expectantly. "Have I convinced you?" She asks him.

"Yes," Ichigo says begrudgingly.

"Would you like me to tell you your future then, you agree to have your fortune told?" She asks him. Ichigo looks at her for a moment before answering.

"Yes." Ichigo finally says, and he pulls out his wallet to pay the fee. The woman smiles at him.

"Thank you!" She says, as she puts the money in a pocket in her shirt. "Let me remind you that I cannot read minds, I can simply tell you what the future holds for you in actions. I see events, of both the past and the future." She tells him with a serious look. Ichigo nods.

"I got it." Ichigo says, waiting for her to continue.

"Before I start giving you your fortune, I'd like to ask you something," the old woman says to him.

"Go ahead, shoot." Ichigo tells her. She nods.

"In regards to the Angel of Death that I mentioned, do you want her in your life or do you want her to leave it?" The woman asks him in a strange tone. Ichigo looks surprised.

"I want her in my life." Ichigo says softly.

"Then you will have a choice to make. If you leave things as they are now, you will definitely lose her. She's been waiting for you to give her a gesture, and given enough time, she will give up on you and move on with her life. Should she do that, she'll meet another man who will not want her anywhere near you." The fortune teller starts. Ichigo leans forward as he listens intently.

"What do you mean, if I leave things the way they are now?" Ichigo asks, feeling a his heart flop into his stomach.

"Even though she's an Angel of Death, she still has feelings. She is very unsure about how far your feelings run for her, and though she cares about you a great deal, she's far too proud to be the one to take action and keep you in her life. It will be up to you to keep her in your life if that's where you want her. If you leave things as they are now, I see her admitting to her future partner that she would have been with you if you would have wanted it. So like I said, it's up to you to keep her in your life or not." The woman patiently explains.

"Are you going to tell me how to do that?" Ichigo asks in a tight voice.

"You have to make a gesture to show her how much you care about her. How much _do_ you care about her?" The psychic asks next.

"A great deal," Ichigo admits to the woman.

"You need to decide on your own what gesture you will give to show this angel how you feel about her. You know her better than anybody, since you have gone through so much together. You may think that because she's older than you that she knows exactly how to confront her feelings, but you are wrong. She has experienced a lot of pain and sadness in her existence, and she may be very strong, but she's not strong enough to put her heart on the line and make a gesture herself. If things keep going the way it appears that they've been going, you will definitely lose her." The woman tells him.

"How much time do I have before she gives up?" Ichigo asks quietly.

"Because angels age differently than humans, I can't really tell. I can see her giving up, but she looks exactly like she does now when she does that. How long that is in angel years, I don't know. I _can_ tell you that you don't look very different than you do now when that happens." The woman says sadly, and Ichigo nods, realizing she doesn't truly understand the importance of what she just said. It seems she can see quite a bit but doesn't fully understand everything she sees.

"I see." Ichigo replies and he looks surprised when she closes her eyes and has more information for him.

"It also seems that there is a young woman that you know who secretly loves you." She says next, causing Ichigo to back up a little bit in his seat.

"There is?" Ichigo asks with a look of displeasure.

"Yes. Although I don't see a future between the two of you, I thought you'd like to know. It might be nice for you to turn her down gently since you'll never be with her. It appears as though she's willing to wait a long time to see if she and you can be together." The psychic says next.

"Do you know what she looks like? I know several young women," Ichigo says to the woman.

"She has long hair, she can see the same supernatural things you can, and you've only ever considered her a friend of a friend up until recently. Now you comfortably call her a friend. I keep getting the feeling of Himé." The fortune teller says, causing Ichigo's face to turn white.

"Inoue Orihime?" Ichigo asks. The woman's eyes widen.

"That does seem to be the name that belongs to the girl." The woman tells him, offering him a smile. "I have a vision of her crying over you at your bedside as you sleep, injured and she is telling you she loves you. Although it seems like this event is in the past and not the future. I'm certain the girl is in love with you. That's what I feel." She backs her chair up and stands.

"We're done?" Ichigo asks, more than satisfied with what she's told him.

"Unless you'd like another one of the services I offer, palm reading, tarot cards, horoscopes, or face reading. The woman responds. Ichigo grins at her and shakes his head.

"No thanks, but thanks for what you told me." Ichigo says as he exits her office. Mizuiro and Keigo jump up as he exits.

"What did she say?" Keigo squeals.

"She said Inoue has a crush on me," Ichigo stupidlyand angrily admits to that and nothing else.

"What? No way, you don't even pay attention to her!" Keigo whines as he looks angry.

"That can't be all she said, considering how long you were in there." Mizuiro says sensibly.

"She had to convince me she was for real too." Ichigo reminds him. Mizuiro nods.

"So she didn't have anything to say about Kuchiki-san?" Mizuiro asks. Ichigo turns his head away to hide the blush he feels warming up his cheeks.

"No." Ichigo says in an even voice, congratulating himself for sounding like he means it.

"Too bad, since she's the only girl I've ever seen you pay attention to," Keigo says with too happy a laugh.

"I'm going home." Ichigo announces as he walks out of the office. Keigo and Mizuiro look at each other and then turn to the old woman who has appeared again behind them.

"I'll pay you twice your normal consultation fee if you tell me what you told him." Keigo tells her, he knows Ichigo is hiding _something_. She shakes her head sadly.

"I'm afraid you wouldn't understand a lot that I said. You would definitely feel ripped off afterwards if I accepted your offer." She tells him softly.

"Did _he_ understand what you said?" Mizuiro asks her, referring to Ichigo. The woman offers him a thin smile.

"He understood perfectly, but you do not live his life and therefore cannot understand how important the things I said are to him, and him alone." She explains.

"How about this, what if I pay for my own consultation and pay you twice that amount to hear what you told him after you give me mine. Even if I don't understand his entire fortune, I'd still like to hear what you told him." Keigo says. The woman stares at him for a minute before agreeing.

"So long as you remember my warning. Also keep in mind I will only share with you his fortune, not the personal information I provided to show him I was genuine." She says, and Keigo nods and follows her into her office.

_At Ichigo's house…_

"When the hell will Rukia get back here? She said she'd be back before the day ended!" Ichigo paces in his room as he thinks about what gesture would be fitting to show Rukia how much he cares for her and doesn't want her to leave his life.

He sighs as he paces. He hasn't done much since he got home besides pace, worry, and glance at his clock a lot. When Kon starts trying to interrupt his thoughts, he deposits him in Yuzu and Karin's room and shuts the door. He goes back to his all important pacing.

"Dinner!" Isshin yells from downstairs. Ichigo sighs as he leaves his room to go eat dinner. He wonders if Rukia will be back by the time he finishes eating. He has refused to let himself think of the fact that Inoue likes him. Just the thought is enough to make him uncomfortable. He's never felt like he could be himself with her, and for that reason alone, he knows he can never be with her.

Ichigo eats his dinner in silence and quickly. For once his family doesn't bug the crap out of him. It seems they've noticed he's got something on his mind and isn't at all in the mood for their usual silly games. When Ichigo finishes his dinner, he goes back to his room to pace some more. He hears the phone ring but doesn't answer it. A minute later, Yuzu yells up.

"Ichigo, phone!" Ichigo goes and takes the portable phone from her and walks towards his room when he hears Keigo on the other line.

"Inoue knows you know she likes you." Keigo says loudly in his ear. Ichigo sighs heavily.

"How does she know that?" Ichigo asks in an irritated voice.

"I told her." Keigo owns up to his actions. "I wanted to know if it was true," he says. Ichigo exhales a loud aggravated breath.

"Great," Ichigo says angrily. "I didn't even want to think about her or her feelings." Ichigo admits in an annoyed voice.

"Yeah, I paid the psychic to tell me the rest, who is the other woman in your life that you're so concerned about?" Keigo asks, causing Ichigo's eyes to widen in horror.

"What?" Ichigo asks in a near whisper due to his horror.

"I paid her to tell me what she told you, she has bills to pay you know. It took some convincing but she finally told me that there were two women in your life that care for you, and that one will wait around and one won't. She also said that she told you that you have to do something to keep the other woman in your life. Either it's Kuchiki-san or someone we don't know about, who is it?" Keigo asks causing Ichigo to glare at the phone he's holding angrily.

"I already told you that she didn't mention Kuchiki-san," Ichigo says in an annoyed voice..

"Yeah but you were probably lying. Unless she meant Tatsuki!" Keigo says excitedly. Ichigo is relieved that the woman didn't tell Keigo that the woman was an Angel of Death. Who knows what Keigo would be saying if that were the case.

_Perhaps she didn't know how to describe what an Angel of Death was, so she kept it simple and just called her a woman._ Ichigo thinks.

"Keigo, you have no life to waste your money on hearing my fortune. You're bothering me. Now Inoue is going to expect me to do or say something and I had no plans on doing that." Ichigo snaps as he hangs up on his friend. Ichigo delivers the phone back to Yuzu and continues to wait for Rukia.

He waits a long time and he spends that time pacing. She doesn't appear until late, after his entire family is asleep. She glides into his window gracefully and jumps to his floor silently. The moment Ichigo sees her, his mind goes blank, even though he's been thinking all evening about how he can show her how much he cares. He can only stare at her wide eyed. She's in her Shinigami robes, and she's gorgeous as usual.

"Yo, Ichigo!" Rukia says, grinning at him a little bit. "Miss me?" She asks breezily.

"I've been waiting for you to come back." Ichigo says in a voice she's never heard before. She looks at him with a hint of confusion evident in her face.

"You have?" Rukia asks him, wondering why he's looking at her so strangely.

"Yes." Ichigo whispers.

"Why?" Rukia asks next as she walks up to him and stares into his eyes which look a little frantic at the moment. "Ichigo, is something wrong?" Rukia asks with concern as she looks at his face.

"Keigo dragged me in to see a psychic today." Ichigo practically whispers before turning his back on her and resuming his pacing. Rukia sits on his bed and trails his movements with her eyes. Anyone looking at her would be reminded of a cat having a toy being dangled in front of its face, from the left to the right over and over and over again.

"I've heard that word before, what in the hell is that?" Rukia asks him quizzically.

"Someone who is sensitive to seeing the past and future without being told about it." Ichigo replies quietly.

"Wow, that's an amazing ability." Rukia says surprised, "Why did Keigo have to drag you to take part in this?" She asks next, thinking it sounds like a fun experience, unless you're told bad things.

"Most people who say they're psychic actually aren't. They're just con artists." Ichigo explains in a tired voice.

"I get it. So this one that you saw was real?" Rukia asks next. Ichigo looks at her and nods his head.

"She convinced me." Ichigo admits. Rukia looks interested.

"How did she do that?" She asks him softly.

"She knew I could see ghosts, hollows, and Shinigami. Although she referred to the hollows as heartless ghosts and to Shingami as Angels of Death." Ichigo tells her. Rukia nods her head in understanding.

"So because she knew that, you were convinced?" Rukia asks him. Ichigo shakes his head.

"No, what convinced me was that she knew I was close to an Angel of Death," Ichigo says, borrowing the psychic's words. "She even said she could see me in the garb of an Angel of Death, though that image had confused her. She also knew you had saved my life." Ichigo explains. Rukia nods her head again.

"So that's how she convinced you?" Rukia asks as she leans back stretching.

"Yeah." Ichigo says.

"So what did she tell you about your future?" Rukia asks next.

"She told me several things. One thing I didn't need to know or hear, but the other things she told me have really bothered me." Ichigo says as he finally quits pacing and sits next to her on the bed.

"So tell me already!" Rukia says swatting at his arm. She waits as Ichigo closes his eyes and opens them again. Panic is there. She feels bad now. Apparently what the psychic said had really gotten to him. "Ichigo?" Rukia asks softly. She's taken aback when he suddenly swings his head towards her and stares deep into her eyes.

"She told me that she can see the future, but she cannot read minds. She asked me if I wanted you in my life or if I wanted you to leave." Ichigo says softly. Rukia can feel her heart beating at a much faster pace.

"She asked you that?" Rukia says in surprise.

"Yes." Ichigo says still staring into her eyes. Rukia can hardly believe this is the discussion they're having. She doesn't say anything, but her entire body feels warmer at Ichigo's words. The way he's looking at her right now tells her exactly what his answer was.

"Then what happened?" Rukia asks in a soft whisper, as she can't tear her eyes away from his. It feels like her insides are pulsating with little tiny bits of pain at the amount of emotion she's feeling all at once.

"She told me that I had one of two paths to take." Ichigo explains carefully not ready to give everything away yet.

"Oh?" Rukia asks in a startled whisper. Ichigo looks at her and nods his head.

"Yeah." Ichigo says, letting the silence in the room take over for a minute. He stands and begins pacing once again. He wants to tell her whatever it takes to keep her in his life but he doesn't want to reveal what is in his heart. It makes for an agonizing walk back and forth through his room.

"What exactly is bothering you now?" Rukia asks in confusion as his face looks more intense by the second.

"I am not good at this stuff." Ichigo mutters quietly. He's made his decision. He will _not_ allow her to leave his life.

"What stuff?" Rukia asks looking more bewildered than before.

"Talking about how I feel…what's in my heart," Ichigo says with a grimace. Rukia can't help but to smile a little bit at his choice of words and face to go along with it.

"I'm no good at that either." Rukia says softly, hiding the smile she'd had on her face just seconds ago. She watches as Ichigo buries his face into his forearms in a display of complete frustration. She begins to take pity on him. He looks downright miserable.

"Yeah, the psychic mentioned that," Ichigo mutters as he searches for the right word or action to show her his feelings.

"Really?" Rukia says, looking at him with her eyebrows raised.

He had at first thought he should kiss her, but visions of her repeatedly slapping him had filled his head. He had then imagined just telling her, but he can't imagine such mushiness coming from his own lips. He looks at her feeling kind of helpless. _If I don't do it, I'll lose her. The thought of her with another man is enough to drive me completely crazy!_

"Yeah." Ichigo says as he continues to try to think of the best gesture to show her his feelings. He's got nothing. He groans as he freaks out trying to figure it out, he'd had all night, why is he acting like a reject now?

"Ichigo?" Rukia asks, she can tell he's at his wits end.

"I know! I'm sorry, okay? This is just so difficult!" Ichigo says as he groans again. He takes a deep breath as his mind runs a million miles a second. She jumps in surprise when he suddenly spins and faces her in mid-pace. "Rukia!" Ichigo nearly shouts. Rukia jumps a second time at the force of his voice. She glances at the door as though she's ready for footsteps but none come.

"Y-Yes?" Rukia asks in as quiet a voice as it can be without whispering. She watches as he approaches her, and kneels down in front of her.

"Promise me you won't hit me," Ichigo says and Rukia blinks. She hadn't imagined he could confound her so much in the short time she's been back in his presence.

"Um, okay I promise." Rukia says softly.

"Or kick me." Ichigo says next. Rukia forces herself to keep a straight face and not smile at his words. He knows her _so_ well.

"I promise." Rukia says a little bit louder.

"Or pinch me or inflict any pain of any kind on me." Ichigo continues as he thinks of whether or not he needs any other promises from her. He looks down and she is starting to get annoyed. _Why is he so concerned I'm going to hit him? _She wonders as she thinks about hitting him for not spitting it out.

"I promise! Stop stalling!" Rukia says a bit frantically. She watches as he stands to his feet after gaining her promise and then uses his badge to pop out of his body. He lifts her in his arms and uses shunpo to get them far away from his house. He lands on the tallest building in Karakura Town and sets her down as he looks into her eyes.

"Rukia, you mean more to me than anybody else in the world. Please-" Ichigo leans down and places a soft loving kiss on her forehead. "don't you ever leave me or give up on me." Ichigo finishes before he uses his index finger to tip her chin up. He leans down and places the most gentle kiss in the world on her lips.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says, eyes wide as she watches him lean back in again.

"You're supposed to kiss me back and tell me you'll never leave me. That you'll never give up on me." Ichigo says in a very soft voice as his lips meet hers again. Rukia kisses him back this time. He pulls away and looks at her. "Now for your promise." Ichigo whispers as he stares at her with love filling his eyes.

"I will never leave you or give up on you Ichigo. I swear it." Rukia says in a low serious, heartfelt voice. Ichigo stares at her for a minute longer.

"That promise means everything to me, for what it represents." Ichigo tells her before leaning down and kissing her again. When he pulls away he looks into her eyes, which appear to be happy beyond measure.

"It means everything to me too." Rukia says softly. Ichigo nods happily, satisfied before he lifts her back into his arms and carries her through his bedroom window.

The Next Day…

Ichigo doesn't hold Rukia's hand on the way to school, and last night she had just climbed into her gigai that she had stored there before leaving for Soul Society and had fallen asleep. It seems like nothing has changed, like no kisses were exchanged and no promise was made. Ichigo starts wondering if he dreamed the whole thing until he notices Rukia glancing up at him with a look she's never given him before.

"Why does everything feel exactly the same?" Rukia asks. Ichigo's not surprised that her thoughts are similar to his own.

"I don't know. Maybe because my feelings were nothing new." Ichigo says with a shrug. Rukia nods. His feelings for her have been strong a long time, just like hers for him. They've both been acting a certain way for so long with these feelings that they don't really know how to take their relationship to the next level, or how to begin a romantic relationship.

"It still doesn't feel right, acting the same way we always have." Rukia mutters as they enter their classroom the same as always, not touching, just being together. They feel like they look like a normal pair of friends. This thought bugs both of them as they take their seats. Ichigo sweats as he tries to figure out what would make her happy. She's always told him how everything is supposed to be done in the past, and he was kind of hoping she'd take charge once again, and let him know where their boundaries are, and what she expects from him.

He had wanted her to sleep in his bed last night. He hadn't said that because he couldn't figure out how to say it without sounding like a pervert. He wonders if she wants him to hold her hand, or if she wants him to announce they're a couple. The teacher isn't in yet and so Ichigo leans towards Rukia.

"What do you want me to do?" Ichigo asks in a whisper. Rukia gives him a flabbergasted look.

"Why are you asking me, as if I know?" Rukia squeaks quietly.

"You don't know what you want?" Ichigo asks, giving her a flustered look. "Really? That doesn't seem like you." Ichigo says, at a complete loss.

"Fool! It's not that I don't know, I just don't know how to put it into words." Rukia says as she ponders it for a minute.

"It would make everything a hell of a lot easier if you just told me what to do." Ichigo says in a disheartened voice. He's suddenly distracted by his thoughts when he overhears Tatsuki comforting Inoue. He doesn't dare turn in his seat. He hadn't told Rukia that part.

Rukia notices the look of distress that pops on Ichigo's face suddenly. She's intrigued by it.

"What's wrong?" She asks him quietly.

"I forgot to tell you something else the psychic told me," Ichigo whispers very quietly. "I'll tell you at lunch. If you overhear it beforehand, don't be mad I didn't tell you, it was the furthest thing from my mind last night." Ichigo says as the teacher enters the room.

Rukia nods before facing the teacher.

_The Lunch Bell Rings…_

Ichigo nods for Rukia to follow him. They head to the roof and sit in a secluded area up there.

"So what did you forget to tell me?" Rukia asks with great interest. She wonders what has him looking so sick all of a sudden.

"She told me that there's a young woman that I know who is in love with me, and she was not talking about you. She said that the girl had long hair and that the word Himé associated with her name." Ichigo says in a voice that shows his feelings of dread.

"Inoue?" Rukia says, wondering if she has the right to feel surprised by that. She had always suspected Inoue had a crush on Ichigo, but he never once acted like he felt anything other than friendship towards Inoue, and Rukia hadn't really given it a whole lot of thought.

"Yeah. The psychic told me I have to tell her to move on. She said that if I don't she'll wait around for me for a long time." Ichigo says with a scowl. Rukia's mouth falls open at that bit of information.

"I thought the psychic couldn't read minds." Rukia says softly. Ichigo looks at her and shakes his head.

"She said she had a vision of Inoue standing at my bedside while I was sleeping and injured. Inoue said she loved me in that vision." Ichigo explains. "What a pain." He finishes with a sigh.

"What are you going to do?" Rukia asks him looking down.

"I don't know. For now, lets go join our friends and eat." Ichigo stands and holds his hand out to Rukia. She accepts it and he helps her to her feet. She's surprised when he doesn't let go. He's still holding her hand as they approach their friends.

"Ichigo?" Rukia gives him a questioning look and Ichigo leans down and whispers in her ear.

"I'm going to tell everyone we're a couple. That's my first goal for lunch with our friends. You're okay with that, right?" Ichigo asks her as he gives her hand a squeeze. She smiles dumbly and nods her head yes.

"What is going on here? You're holding hands!" Mizuiro pipes up and Keigo looks over and screams.

"No! Ichigo you lying bastard!" Keigo puts his face in his knees dejectedly. Ichigo doesn't meet Inoue's eyes as he smiles at Mizuiro.

"She's my girlfriend." Ichigo says simply. Ichigo is surprised when Sado, Ishida, Mizuiro, and Chizuru all start clapping and cheering.

"It's about damned time!" Ishida says.

"Finally." Sado says in a low quiet voice.

"Don't lie, you were already dating," Mizuiro says.

"I knew it!" Chizuru jumps up and down and screams happily. She throws her arms around Inoue's neck and squeezes their breasts together.

"Isn't it great, Inoue?" Chizuru asks as she moans from touching Inoue. Tatsuki kicks her so hard she flies head first into a tree. Between Rukia and Ichigo, Rukia is the only one who turns to look at Inoue.

Rukia can see that she's holding back tears and looks very distressed and upset.

"So Ichigo, how serious is this?" Tatsuki asks. Ichigo almost smiles. Leave it to Tatsuki to give him an opening to turn down Inoue without having to talk to her.

"I'm crazy about her." Ichigo says in a sure and clear voice. "If I can get her to marry me, I will." Ichigo says nodding his head towards the petite woman whose hand he's still holding. They sit down.

"Wow, you deny it and deny it for so long that when you finally admit it, you're talking about marriage?" Mizuiro asks wide eyed. Ichigo grins as the most brilliant closer comes to his brain.

"There is no other girl for me." Ichigo says to the group as he finally lets go of Rukia to eat his lunch. Rukia's face is red as a tomato, and she feels bad that Inoue's so upset, but she can't help not caring about that. She's never in her life been happier, she's on cloud nine. For all his talk about not knowing what to do, he sure had fixed everything for her and for his friends quickly and smoothly. She has the distinct feeling that he doesn't want to confront Inoue one on one.

She smiles as she thinks. _He always does his best to take care of me._

_Conclusion…_

That night, Rukia and Ichigo have their first make out session, and they stay up making out for hours. Rukia can hardly believe the change that's taken place in a mere twenty-four hours. She never imagined it could feel so good being in his arms, touching his skin, kissing his lips, feeling him touching her and kissing her. It's a million times better than her dreams and a million times more passionate than in her past imaginings. She's positive she can spend the rest of her existence being with Ichigo. They fall asleep in his bed together without making love just yet.

Ichigo wants to show her how he feels by taking it slow physically since he was throwing words like marriage out there today. He knows that he wants to make love to her, but he doesn't want it to feel rushed. He didn't tell her how he felt so that he could stick it in. He told her so that she never left him. She swore she wouldn't, so he will not run their relationship at the speed of shunpo.

The most surprising thing for him is that Rukia seems to expect him to know what to do next all the time, even though he's more clueless than her. She seemed happy with what they were doing and so was he. One thing that amazes Ichigo is how afraid he was to share what he felt in his heart, and then the moment he actually did it, he felt a million times better.

Inoue cries all night long as she comes to grip with reality. No matter how much she might have suspected his feelings were with Kuchiki-san, it still killed her to see it first hand. He had called her his girlfriend, and he had said Kuchiki-san was the only girl for him. She cries at the injustice, and she cries at the loss. She may not have ever had his heart, but she could at least dream she did and say it was possible. After today, she knows she can't even tell herself that she has a chance. His heart is completely owned, and it belongs to Kuchiki-san.

"Why does she deserve him more than me? She's not even an inhabitant of this _world_!" Inoue wails. Little does she know, with or without Kuchiki, Ichigo would have never been interested in her. As a result, her heartbreak was inevitable for wanting someone she could never ever have. It never crosses her mind that she makes Chizuru feel as miserably as she herself feels after the day's events have concluded.


	20. Truth Serum

_Truth Serum_

"Hold her down!" Matsumoto looks down at Rukia's face with a sardonic look on her face. She has some furry looking handcuffs as she contemplates the young noble woman before her. Rukia wonders how in the hell it got to this point.

_Flashback_

"Alright Ichigo, I won't be back for a couple of days," Rukia says. It's the League of Women Shinigami's annual bash and Matsumoto's birthday and they're being combined into a three day bash. Because of that it will be a women only party and Rukia is of course going to go.

"Rukia..." Ichigo trails off as he looks at her and then looks away.

"Yeah?" Rukia asks him before she stands next to the window, ready to jump out.

"Come back soon, okay?" Ichigo says with a strange look in his eye. Rukia rolls her eyes.

"I'm leaving for a party Ichigo, not battle. I told you the other day that I would be gone for two to three days. If I'm not back by then, that is when you should start worrying." Rukia says lightly. Ichigo shakes his head stubbornly.

"I always worry about you," he tells her softly. Rukia grins at him.

"See you!" Rukia says before she hops out the window and to the ground. She typically runs around the corner so that Ichigo's sister doesn't see the gate to Soul Society and get freaked out.

Ichigo stares at her until she disappears and he lets out a sigh as he looks around. He notices that with her departure, his good mood has left too. He goes to the window and looks up into the sky. He's been feeling confused lately. He isn't totally sure why, but he knows it has something to do with the pretty Shinigami that just left the living world.

He knows what to expect. Sleepless nights, no stimulating conversation, and an emptiness beyond belief. It's how he always feels whenever she's not nearby. He often wonders if he's too dependent on her since she doesn't seem to have any qualms or discomfort in leaving him and smiling as she's doing it. Sure, she's coming back, but she's still leaving and she looked happy about it.

Ichigo wonders what the hell a group of women do by themselves at a party, and what crazy activities Rukia may get involved in with the mischievous women in the girl power club. Ichigo puts on his scowl, the one that will remain until he sees her with his own eyes again.

Rukia enters Soul Society and uses shunpo to get to the party destination. When she steps inside, she notices that she is the last one to arrive, which seems odd. Even odder is that everyone seems to be focused on her. Rukia smiles brightly.

"I didn't realize I was late," Rukia says in apology as she enters the room.

"You're not." Yachiru says with a giggle.

"I'm the last one here." Rukia points out.

"Everyone else was early," Sui Fong says in a business like voice. Rukia steps further into the room and nods as she casts a nervous look at the group of women who don't seem to be inclined to look anywhere other than where Rukia is standing. Matsumoto steps forward.

"I was just telling everybody what I wanted from them," Matsumoto says cheerfully, causing Rukia to smile and pull a small package out from her robe.

"Isn't it a little bit late for that? I already got you a gift." Rukia says as she looks at the other woman. Matsumoto shakes her head.

"No, there's something else I want from you. It's your choice, you can keep the gift you got me, give it to someone else, or return it." Matsumoto says in a hard tone. Rukia's mouth falls open. She's never heard such an ungrateful response to a gift. She wonders if this is why everyone stared at her when she came in.

"What do you mean, something else." Rukia asks in confusion.

"It won't cost you a penny so you can't say no." Matsumoto asks.

"What do you want?" Rukia asks next, feeling dread in her stomach.

"I want the juicy details of the relationship between you and Kurosaki Ichigo!" Matsumoto says loudly, causing Rukia to sweat and turn a dark shade of red.

"What do you mean? There is nothing going on between Ichigo and I!" Rukia finally says in a high voice.

"Alright girls, time for Plan B." Matsumoto had said. Rukia had a reiatsu sealing collar on her neck in less than half a second and without her spirit power, she was pretty much at their mercy even though she had continued to deny a relationship with Ichigo.

_End flashback_

"I know it's more than nothing," Matsumoto says in a threatening voice as she handcuffs Rukia's hands behind her back. Rukia looks up at the women who all seem to want to hear the answer to Matsumoto's question and are forming a united front.

"What do you mean by that? Nothing has happened between me and Ichigo!" Rukia says in a nervous voice as she looks up. Nobody is buying it.

"Then how come he came and brought hell on Soul Society when he realized you were in trouble?" Nemu asks.

"Yeah, and how come you're the only one he lets stay at his house?" Matsumoto says next.

"You're also the only one he smiles at," Sui Fong says next. "Yoruichi told me so." She adds.

"You would have to ask him those questions! How in the hell should I know why he did all of that?" Rukia squeaks.

"You brought it, right Nemu?" Matsumoto asks. Rukia looks fearfully up at Nemu. She has access to many weird and strange products as the Lieutenant of the Twelfth Division.

"Yes." Nemu says in a monotonous voice. Rukia gulps as Nemu pulls out a syringe.

"What is that?" Rukia asks, her voice cracking.

"It's the latest product developed by the Twelfth Division for interrogation purposes. It's the most effective truth serum in existence." Nanao says as she pushes her glasses up her nose.

"It's been tested, and it's completely safe." Nemu says softly as she squats down next to Rukia and pulls up the sleeve of her Shinigami robe. Rukia holds her breath as the prick of the needle infiltrates her skin and then flows into her bloodstream.

"Now we must wait five minutes to get the most truthful answers. We'll have plenty of time after that." Nemu says. Rukia sweats the whole time as the women start making a list of all the questions they want to ask her. Rukia grimaces and starts to feel really panicky. All she wants is to go back to the living world and be with Ichigo. Her eyes widen as she has this thought.

_Back In The Real World..._

"Hello?" Ichigo says in a grouchy voice.

"Kurosaki-san, I'm afraid you're going to have to go to Soul Society if you want to save Kuchiki-san." Urahara's voice says on the other line.

"What are you talking about? She left for a party not an execution." Ichigo tells him.

"Yoruichi just told me what the plan is for Kuchiki-san and I'm afraid to tell you that she is in big trouble. You're going to have to learn the spell to call forth the gates of Soul Society since the seven day method would take far too long." Urahara tells him. Ichigo is at his house in less than thirty seconds.

It only takes him ten minutes to master the spell. He runs through the pathway between the living world and Soul Society and rushes in there, setting off a few alarms at his unannounced entry. Ever since he had learned how to put his energy in Kuukaku's spirit orb, his attempts at kidou are more successful. Like when he used Yoruichi's contraption to fly.

_Back at the party..._

"It's time! Five minutes have passed," Nemu announces to the group.

"Icchy is here!" Yachiru shouts out with a giggle, and everyone stares at Rukia.

"Why is he here?" They ask her. Rukia lifts her shoulders and gives them a bewildered look.

"I don't know." Rukia answers honestly. The women look at each other as Ichigo breaks down the door to the building and busts in before they can even hide Rukia. Ichigo takes one look at all the women surrounding Rukia and of her current condition before he flies in and scoops her up so quickly none of them can even draw their weapon.

"Rukia, are you okay?" Ichigo asks her as he moves further and further away from the women at the party.

"I feel kind of weird." Rukia tells him. Ichigo stops and sets her on a hill with trees all around them. He's gone a far way since he left the party. He easily busts the chain on the handcuffs so that her hands are free.

"There. You must have been uncomfortable with your arms tied behind your back." Ichigo comments.

"Yeah, I don't like the feeling of not being in control," Rukia says softly and calmly.

"What were they doing to you? From where I stood it didn't look good." Ichigo says quietly as he notices the collar on her neck. It brings back some very unpleasant memories.

"They wanted answers from me. They were willing to go to great lengths to get those answers too," Rukia says, afraid to tell Ichigo they injected her with truth serum for fear he'll take advantage of her too.

"What kind of answers?" Ichigo asks her with an angry look on his face.

"Answers I didn't have. About you." Rukia says as she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Her body feels all tight and her tongue feels loose.

"About me?" Ichigo asks her as he stares at the collar, wondering how to get it off.

"Yes. About you and me." Rukia answers more thoroughly.

"So that's why your powers were sealed and you were cuffed," Ichigo concludes for her. He's surprised when she grimaces and it appears she doesn't want to say anything, but her lips move despite the pained look on her face.

"I was injected with truth serum too." Rukia says softly, "just before you busted in and rescued me." Rukia finishes and Ichigo's head swivels towards her, giving her a strange look.

"Truth serum, why?" Ichigo asks in a soft voice.

"My answers did not satisfy them and they thought truth serum was the only way to get the answers they wanted." Rukia explains patiently.

"What were they asking you?" Ichigo asks her next.

"They wanted all the juicy details between us," Rukia says, knowing there's nothing to admit to.

"Do you want me to stop talking to you for now?" Ichigo asks, wondering if he's asking her too much while she's not able to hide anything.

"No, that would be a very rude request to the guy that just saved me." Rukia replies as she looks off into the distance. Ichigo sees the pained look on her face and he can't help it, he has to ask.

"Rukia, you look miserable, what is wrong?" Ichigo asks watching her out the corner of his eye.

"I've been living a lie!" Rukia says as she gets really upset. Ichigo's mouth falls open in surprise.

"I'm sorry Rukia! I wasn't trying to upset you, I was just worried about you." Ichigo says, feeling bad for seeing her get so emotional.

"You want me to stop asking you questions while you're in this condition don't you?" Ichigo asks her, his expression sympathetic.

"Yes," Rukia whispers. Ichigo grabs her arm, causing her to look up at him.

"If the situation were reversed, would you do that for me?" Ichigo asks her softly. Rukia gulps as she averts her eyes.

"No." She whispers, feeling a wave of self hatred, for her hypocrisy. Ichigo smiles at her, feeling relieved that she's okay and now she's going to have to tell him something. Now, while she can't run from it.

"If you wouldn't do it for me, then I cannot do it for you either. I can do a lot of things Rukia but I cannot let this opportunity pass now that I know you too would take advantage of the situation if it were reversed." Ichigo tells her causing her eyes to get very large with horror.

"Right now, I only have one question. It's one that I'm sure you'll hate my asking though." Ichigo tells her with a small grin that doesn't look happy but actually looks comforting. Rukia waits as he stares at her. Finally she can't take the suspense.

"What?" Rukia finally asks him.

"What have you been hiding from me?" Ichigo asks her. Rukia's eyes widen at the question and she desperately wants to stop herself but she cannot. The horrid medication that she had been injected with was doing its job whether or not she wants it to.

"I love you more than anyone or anything in this world. I dream all the time of what it would be like to have you take me in your arms and press your lips on mine. Sometimes the level at which I physically and sexually desire you scares the hell out of me. I have peeked at you when you're changing. I have an obsession with your ass." Rukia pauses to breathe some air before continuing and Ichigo's eyes are as wide as saucers as she goes on and on and on.

"Rukia-" Ichigo tries to interrupt but she cuts him off, continuing to answer the previous question, since the truth isn't out yet and the potion is going to make her spill it all out.

"Every time I ride on your back it gets me wet. I love it that you don't pay attention to other girls. I love being close to you, the feeling of your reiatsu makes me hot. I think you're amazing beyond compare. I am lucky to have you in my life. I have fantasies of us getting married and even having children. I've imagined so many times what it would be like to hear you tell me that you love me. I imagine the satisfaction I would get if we made love. I imagine you looking at me adoringly. I get horny when I remember how you saved me at Soukyoku. I would break any number of rules to be there for you, to be next to you. I hate being apart from you, and I always act confident and secure when all I really want is to be with you." Rukia pauses again and Ichigo starts feeling really bad about what he asked.

"Rukia!" Ichigo tries to stop her, he's heard plenty. The medicine doesn't work that way. You get the whole truth and nothing but the truth until the question is answered.

"Sometimes I wonder if you are the reincarnation of Shiba Kaien, even though in some ways you're nothing like him. When you came to save me in Soul Society I was joyous. I don't think there is any being in the world more wondrous than you. My life was empty beyond compare before you came with your strength and made everything right. I sometimes wonder if you would hate me if you knew what was really in my heart and that is that I'm deeply and madly, and hopelessly in love with you. Every time I thought you might die, I wanted to die with you. Living without you would be the same thing as hell to me. Nothing is as important to me as you are. You have awed me on many occasions. I would sooner die than to watch you die. Whenever you save me, you make me feel like a princess. I wanted you to kiss me when you saved me at Soukyoku. Every time I call you an idiot, in my head I think 'I love you.' Watching your level of growth made me work harder to be even more strong so that I could stand next to you always." Rukia tells Ichigo, her face is completely red.

"Damn Rukia…" Ichigo says thinking she's done, but she doesn't stop.

"I have felt drawn to you since the day I met you, and I started to fall for you that first night too. Even though I tell you I don't want you to protect me, whenever you do I'm relieved since it's what I would do for you. Part of the reason I like to make you mad is because I like that you react to me, versus how you ignore other people. When I saw you on the bridge in Soul Society, I thought you looked like a god. I have already in my heart given my life to you. When I decided to stay in Soul Society after you saved me, it was partly to regain my powers back and partly because I was terrified I interfered with your life. I think I would go insane if you decided you liked another girl. I killed Shiba Kaien as you know and I wonder if I even deserve someone as wonderful as you in my life." Rukia finally concludes.

"Wow you didn't leave anything out, did you?" Ichigo asks in a bewildered tone.

"That's all I can consciously remember hiding." Rukia answers, still looking down. She hadn't looked up at him at all during her long winded speech.

"Rukia, it could be true that honesty is the best policy. The feelings that you described having for me damn near mirror my feelings for you. I don't like it when we're apart either. I love you." Ichigo whispers feeling like a jerk for making her go through all of that. He wants to kiss her.

"Do you want a kiss?" Ichigo whispers, knowing he'll get the truth.

"Yes." Rukia answers and Ichigo leans over and kisses her fully on the lips before opening his mouth and offering her as much love as he can in one kiss. Ichigo finally pulls away and looks into her happy eyes.

"How do we get rid of this collar?" He asks her next.

"We have to see ni-sama." Rukia replies. Ichigo looks horrified.

"We can't while you're in this condition. If you tell him my reiatsu makes you hot, he'll release his sword on my private parts." Ichigo says looking sick.

"If we don't remove these, those women might go get a second dose for you." Rukia says next. That gets Ichigo moving. He grabs her up in his arms since she can't shunpo while her spirit power is sealed, and he prays Byakuya doesn't ask anything that will get him seriously injured.

When Ichigo arrives with Rukia in his arms at Byakuya's office, Byakuya immediately stands and looks at Ichigo angrily.

"What is the meaning of this?" Byakuya asks.

"Ichigo saved me and brought me here because I need your help." Rukia says.

"Can you get that thing off of her?" Ichigo asks him next.

"Who did this?" Byakuya roars next.

"The League of Women Shinigami." Rukia instantly replies, causing Byakuya to for once be speechless. Ichigo could see what question was coming next and he did his best to avoid it.

"These questions are pointless just get the damned thing off of her neck!" Ichigo says loudly, hoping Byakuya will stop asking any more questions. It doesn't work because Byakuya acts like Ichigo is nonexistent.

"Why?" Byakuya asks Rukia next.

"They wanted to force me to tell them all the juicy details of mine and Ichigo's relationship." Rukia says in a clear voice. Byakuya shoots an icy glare at Ichigo, before turning his head back to Rukia who begins talking again. "They injected me with-" Rukia's voice is muffled successfully by Ichigo's hand.

"Stop!" Ichigo hisses.

"Get your hands off my sister! Who in the hell do you think you are?" Byakuya says, his voice becoming dangerously low. Ichigo reluctantly removes his hand from her mouth. "Rukia, what did they inject you with?" Byakuya asks next.

"Truth Serum." Rukia replies, causing Ichigo to groan and wonder if it's too late to run away and let Byakuya and Rukia handle it from here.

"Can I go home?" Ichigo asks Rukia.

"I want you to stay but that doesn't mean you can't go." Rukia whispers back. Ichigo fights the urge to run the other way.

"And where does Kurosaki Ichigo fit into this plan?" Byakuya asks in that same low dangerous voice.

"He saved me from them, removed the handcuffs, asked me some questions and brought me to you." Rukia answers her brother.

"What questions did he ask you?" Byakuya asks.

"How to remove the collar!" Ichigo says as loudly as he can to drown out Rukia's answer. It's no use, her answer is much longer.

"He asked me if I was okay, he asked me what they did to me, why they did it, he asked what kind of answers the women wanted, and if they were about him, why they injected me, he asked me if I wanted him to stop talking, he asked me what was wrong, if I wanted him to stop asking him questions while I was under the influence of the serum, and then he asked me if I would respect his wish to not ask questions if the situation were reversed."

Rukia takes a deep breath before continuing. "Then he asked me if I was hiding anything from him, and then he asked me if I'd missed anything, and then he asked me if I wanted a kiss, and then how to get the collar off. He also asked which direction your office was." Rukia finishes and Byakuya looks a bit sick.

"Come with me Rukia, we'll get the collar off of you." Byakuya says, leading her out of the room. Ichigo stands there helplessly, hoping Byakuya stops with his questions.

Byakuya only asks his sister one question as he removes the collar out of Ichigo's hearing distance.

"Want me to hurt him for you?" Byakuya whispers. Rukia gives him a sad smile.

"No, he did save me from the women. I would appreciate though if you didn't ask me anything right now. I am divulging far more information than necessary on the simplest of questions." Rukia admits, causing Byakuya to give her a swift compassionate look.

"This isn't a question, just an offer. Let me know if you want me to get some of that truth serum to use on him so that you can find out what he's hiding, but tell me at a later time." Byakuya says. Rukia gives him a smile.

"My answer will be yes." She tells him. He smiles at her and them quickly resumes his typical demeanor before walking her back to Ichigo.

"Keep other people away from her." Byakuya orders. Rukia and Ichigo shunpo to the Senkai Gate. Ichigo notices a disturbing gleam in her eye and as they enter the Senkai gate he looks at her.

"What are you thinking?" Ichigo asks feeling a nervous chill run up the center of his spine.

"Pay back is a bitch." Her answer is enough to make his blood run cold.


	21. Scared Of Rukia

_Scared of Rukia_

Rukia sighs as she watches Renji and Ichigo training. They are in the hidden room _if_ you can call it that beneath Urahara's store. Ichigo doesn't appear to be trying his hardest and he and Renji start arguing about that.

"If I went all out on you I'd kill you," Ichigo growls at him. Renji's response is punching Ichigo in the face, sending him flying into a rock.

Rukia climbs up the ladder and goes upstairs. It's best to leave them alone when they start acting like they're slow in the head.

"Don't be such an arrogant prick! You're not the only one in this room with a bankai." Renji says in a near shout as Ichigo pulls himself out of the rocks. Ichigo glances around before noticing Rukia wasn't present for that comment.

"You're lucky she wasn't here to hear that." Ichigo says to him, as he faces Renji, unguarded, acting like he didn't just get smacked into some rocks.

"Why?" Renji asks, he's never been the considerate and sensitive type.

"She is one of the few people in this world that I'd be scared to death to fight, and she doesn't need a bankai to make me fear the idea of her ever facing me with deadly intent." Ichigo admits, causing Renji to start chuckling.

"I can't believe it, of all the people in this world to fear, you fear Rukia? Oh my god, you are seriously messed up," Renji laughs, pointing at Ichigo like he's a complete loser.

"Like you wouldn't be just as terrified if she wanted your blood," Ichigo says next, looking at Renji closely.

"Rukia is an amazing girl, but she doesn't scare me." Renji says as he swings Zabimaru around in his hand.

"I don't know who you think you're fooling but it isn't me." Ichigo responds with a smirk. He can practically envision Renji pissing his pants if Rukia were pissed as hell at him.

"Shut up! Just because you're afraid of her doesn't mean I am, you and I are _nothing_ alike!" Renji protests. Ichigo can't help but nod his head.

"You're right about that, we're nothing alike, but this is _one thing_ we have in common. No matter how much you deny it, I already know." Ichigo says, daring Renji to argue some more.

"In case you've forgotten, I was one of the ones chosen to apprehend Rukia when she disappeared from Soul Society. Did I _look_ like I was afraid of her? I wasn't as strong then as I am now." Renji asks in a completely annoyed voice, totally ignorant of the way Ichigo's reiatsu has jumped at his words.

"Are you proud of that?" Ichigo asks in a low menacing voice. His power hasn't felt _this_ strong since he was fighting for Rukia in Soul Society. Renji looks up in sudden realization at Ichigo's growing anger. This is a sore topic for Ichigo.

"Did I say I was proud of that?" Renji asks, keeping up his bravado.

Rukia who had felt Ichigo's reiatsu jump the moment Renji had brought up being chosen to bring her back to Soul Society had rushed to get back into the basement. What she sees, shocks her.

"It seems you need to be taught another lesson if you're using that sorry day in your life as an excuse to say you're not afraid." Ichigo growls as he holds Zangetsu more seriously.

"A real fight? True training? I'd _love_ to!" Renji shouts, as they both charge at each other.

She watches as Ichigo quickly overpowers Renji, forcing her friend to jump back and Ichigo's reiatsu flares even more dangerously. They're going _too_ far.

"Using that day for reference _to me_ is like saying you're ready to die!" Ichigo shouts just before his eyes turn blue. "Bankai." Ichigo's voice is low and menacing. Renji and Rukia's eyes both widen and Renji hurriedly follows suit.

"Bankai!" Renji shouts as Ichigo is appearing in his bankai form with a swirl of smoke clearing in the air around him. Rukia's eyes widen. She can clearly see Ichigo's killing intent and she can only feel the need to defend coming from Renji. Zangetsu is practically sparkling.

"Your bankai is as ugly as you are!" Ichigo shouts before he charges high speed at Renji and successfully stabs him in the stomach. He easily slid around Renji's huge bankai with his tremendous speed. Ichigo lifts his sword into the air with Renji impaled on it as Rukia comes tearing at them.

"Renji!" Rukia sounds completely terrified, and Ichigo suddenly realizes she might not understand. Ichigo quickly drops Renji to the ground and withdraws his sword. Rukia ignores Ichigo and begins with her healing kidou, but the damage is severe. Rukia glares up at Ichigo, he's looking away.

"We're coming down!" Urahara calls as he jumps down and lands with Inoue in his arms. "I called her the moment I sensed Kurosaki-san's killing intent." Urahara announces.

"I was already putting on my coat when he called because I felt it too," Inoue says with a smile. Rukia turns on Ichigo as Inoue hurries over to completely heal Renji who's still in a serious state.

"What in the hell is wrong with you? You very nearly killed Renji!" Rukia snaps angrily as Ichigo backs away from her, slowly.

"He's the one who wanted a real fight," Ichigo mutters, not meeting her eyes.

"That wasn't a real fight for training, your bloodlust was so strong it was stifling! You did this with the intent to kill! Why?" Rukia looks up at Ichigo with tears in her eyes, true tears, and Ichigo makes the mistake of glancing at her in that moment. He starts to sweat.

"He really pissed me off." Ichigo mutters. Rukia doesn't feel the least bit consoled by his explanation.

"Just because someone pisses you off, doesn't mean you should kill them!" Rukia says angrily as a few tears fall down her face for her friend. Ichigo looks guilty as hell now but he doesn't try to explain it away.

Renji sits up now that Inoue has completely healed him and Inoue watches as Ichigo refuses to meet Rukia's eyes.

"He had it coming." Ichigo says stubbornly, causing Rukia to smack him so hard and fast that he flies to the ground with his body rattling. She hurries over to Renji and squats down.

"Renji, are you okay?" Rukia asks as Renji inspects his perfectly healed stomach. Ichigo scoffs and uses his shunpo to get the hell out of there. It wasn't like he could explain to her why he suddenly felt compelled to murder a friend she's had for decades and decades.

"Yeah." Renji knows he should feel glad that Ichigo took off after receiving a wicked hit from Rukia, he feels guilty that she's fawning over him. After all, Ichigo had been fighting in her honor.

"Want to tell me what in the hell happened?" Rukia asks, no longer concerned about his health. She wants answers and she wants them now. Renji gulps nervously as he suddenly realizes Ichigo was right, that the woman in front of him does have the ability to scare the living shit out of him.

"Not really," Renji replies, causing Rukia to quickly stand and use her foot to push his chest down so that his back is into the ground.

"It wasn't a question, it was a command." She tells him in a hard voice. _She sure does have that Kuchiki air of superiority nailed_, Renji thinks as he stares up at her and swallows nervously. It's not often that one stares up at Kuchiki Rukia, but when you're staring up at her, you're suddenly aware of just how dangerous a woman she is. Her eyes are as cold as ice.

"I'm not a dog that obeys commands," Renji squeaks, causing Rukia to kick him in his freshly healed stomach.

"Don't make me force it out of you," Rukia threatens in a very menacing voice for a girl who's only four foot seven.

It takes her a half hour to forcibly drag the story out of a surprisingly stubborn Renji, and beats him as violently for telling him the story just as hard as she beats him when he doesn't talk. Inoue looks on with a horrified look on her face. She's never been as scared of a girl as she is right now.

"He told me he wouldn't fight me seriously, because if he went all out he'd kill me." Renji starts. Rukia smacks him when he doesn't continue right away.

"And? That can't be all of it. Spit it out _now_ Renji!" Rukia demands as she kicks his gut three times in rapid succession. Renji realizes Ichigo was wise to disappear.

"I told him not to be a prick since he wasn't the only one in the room with a bankai," Renji says. "He immediately looked to see if you were in the room and he told me I was lucky you didn't hear me. I asked him why and he said that you were one of the only people in the world that scares him when you're mad, and I told him I'm not afraid of you." Renji says, earning several punches at the end of that statement.

"You look kind of scared right now though Renji, why is that?" Rukia asks icily.

"She's right, you do look pretty scared," Urahara calls out in a sing song voice.

"So tell me Renji, what happened after you made that stupid statement?" Rukia asks as she punches him in the face after each word.

"He accused me of lying and I told him you were amazing but not scary." Renji says as Rukia's fist flies at his nose. "But upon reconsidering, perhaps it was a thoughtless statement." Renji says weakly. Inoue covers her mouth with her hand, looking frightened.

"You think?" Rukia says sarcastically before letting her foot land in his stomach again. "Then what happened?" She asks him.

"I told him that just because he's afraid of you doesn't mean I am since he and I are nothing alike, to which he agreed. He still accused me of being afraid of you though, and I got irritated. I reminded him that I was one of the people chosen to apprehend you to come back to Soul Society." Renji says in a regretful voice. Surprisingly though, Rukia doesn't hit him. She takes a step away from him.

She wants to run to Ichigo but she needs to hear the rest first.

"You will tell me the rest now," Rukia says softly, standing away from him. For some reason, Renji is suddenly more afraid now that she's out of his reach more than he was when she was inflicting unspeakable pain on his barely recovered body. Renji sits up and looks at her anxiously.

"He asked me if I was proud of that." Renji practically whispers. Rukia feels so badly for yelling at Ichigo now. "I asked him if I said I was proud, and that was when you came running down." Renji explains. Rukia gives him a look of disgust that clearly tells him to stay away from her for awhile. Inoue has a sick feeling about these events. She is sure this is bound to push Kurosaki-kun and Kuchiki-san closer together than ever.

Rukia runs as fast as she can possibly run. She finally makes it to Ichigo's house and she jumps up into the window. His face is in the pillow and he doesn't look at her. She bites her lip. How does she tell him she forgives him and is sorry she interfered in his fight for her own pride?

"Ichigo," Rukia whispers, and she feels tears falling down her cheek. Ichigo slowly and reluctantly turns his head towards her, waiting for her to get more violent with him than she ever has in her life before. His eyes widen as he sees the tears. "I'm so sorry," Rukia says, staring at him with tear filled eyes. Ichigo sits up on his bed and looks at her uncertainly. Why in the hell is she apologizing? She has every right to be angry that he nearly killed someone near and dear to her.

"Huh?" Ichigo says, clearly confused.

"I shouldn't have yelled at you, I should have known you would have good reason for attacking Renji. For him to bring up that night, was wrong. On his part, not yours." Rukia whispers as she falls to her knees and continues looking at him.

Ichigo sucks in a deep breath. _That night_. They've never talked about that night beyond what she'd said about it the first time she'd seen him in Soul Society.

"No, you were right. I went way too far." Ichigo whispers, unable to stop looking at her, hoping she will drop the subject and realize he's not mad at her.

"No. For what that night has meant to me, and for what it must mean to you, I want you to know I understand why you reacted the way that you did." Rukia says in a halted voice.

"Still, he's your best friend." Ichigo says, feeling his chest tighten up. He is not ready for this talk. What if she finds out she means more to him than anyone or anything? What if she only wants to stay comrades, despite the obvious spark between them?

"He was being a terrible friend when he said that. You were right when you said he had it coming." Rukia says, giving him an urgent and needy look.

"Still, I didn't mean to upset you. I'm sorry." Ichigo whispers.

"Ichigo." Rukia says and Ichigo watches her a bit warily as she moves forward on her knees and rests her elbows on his knees. He watches as she gets closer and he feels like he could just die right now. She surely has no idea how much he wants to kiss her, but he doesn't dare because she is Rukia and he is Ichigo.

Rukia looks into his eyes which have a lot of fear and uncertainty in them. She gets real close without touching him and for a split second she sees a flash of desire in his eyes. That's all it takes. Rukia lifts one hand up and grabs him by the hair to hold his head still. She leans in and kisses him as sweetly and lovingly as she possibly can. When she pulls away, he opens his eyes and stares at her, with a dumbfounded look on his face.

"Rukia." Ichigo says, unable to comprehend what just happened.

"You can't give a girl that's crazy about you that kind of look," Rukia whispers breathlessly. "I can't help but kiss you when you look at me that way." She tells him. "Probably because I'm madly in love with you." Rukia whispers.

The room seems to glow as their excited reiatsu collides and melds together and then seems to explode with sparks all around them. It's the most amazing feeling either of them could have imagined.

"I've waited a long time to hear you say those words." Ichigo tells her before kissing her back fiercely and passionately. He pulls her up and drags her into his lap. When he pulls away he blushes as he looks at her. "Since I feel the exact same way about you."


	22. Beautiful

_Beautiful_

Rukia is bored. Ichigo had something called a dentist appointment and he had told her he would not be able to help with hollows while he was having his teeth examined and cleaned. He said his father had made appointments for the entire family so he might not be home for a few hours.

She walks around Ichigo's room and decides she would like to draw some pictures. She starts opening the drawers next to his desk to locate some paper, and to see if he has any better drawing utensils other than the ones in the cup on his desk.

She opens up the top drawer and it's reference books, probably to help him do his homework. She has no interest in things like that and so she opens up the next drawer. She's delighted when she finds a box of colored pencils. She wonders how long he's had them, they look new. Now she just needs paper.

She opens up the bottom drawer, and she finds what she was looking for. She pulls out a pile of paper and sets it on the desk. She decides to make a funny picture of Byakuya. She had always done this when she lived in the Kuchiki mansion. She had learned to burn her drawings of him after one had been found by a servant, and she had received a long lecture on the merits of not making pictures that depict others in a bad light. Ni-sama had _not_ been pleased.

She wouldn't have to burn them here though. She wonders if Ichigo would laugh at her drawing of her brother or if he'd make fun of her drawing. She puts that thought aside as she tries to think of the most comical situation that she can for her drawing. It's difficult because her brother is normally not involved in humorous events. Rukia supposes she'll have to create something fictional in order to make it a funny drawing.

She finally decides that her brother on his knees begging Matsumoto for sex as empty sake bottles lay strewn around them would be pretty funny. Rukia gets to work on trying to make a great drawing since she won't have to burn it, but she keeps screwing up his hair. She throws out failure after failure in an attempt to create the funniest picture she's ever made of her brother. It's totally unrealistic on her brother's end, but she doesn't doubt that Matsumoto has been in this exact situation with different men doing the begging.

After her tenth attempt, she fails yet again before she lifts up the sheet to toss it out. What she sees underneath, stumps her. It's a love letter, and it doesn't appear to be finished. It doesn't have a name on it to signify who it is to, but it is clearly Ichigo's handwriting. She hadn't been able to help but to read the first sentence.

_It's been on my mind for awhile, what it would be like to tell you that I love you, but I have not been able to get up the courage to do it._

She hates herself for not being able to resist the temptation to read the rest.

_A girl like you is every guy's dream. I don't love you because of that though. I do think you're more beautiful than any being in any realm, but that is not why I love you either. I would like to describe it but it sounds too corny when I try. I'm not very good at love letters, as I'm sure you can tell. You would be the first girl that I said it to, and if you didn't say it back, I don't know what I would do. I cannot offer you very much either as I fight with my life on the line every day. _

That's it. He didn't even sign it, which leads her to believe it isn't finished. After all he hasn't addressed it either. She feels tears in her eyes. She knows why. Never once in a million years would she have believed Kurosaki Ichigo was capable of writing a love letter. It doesn't fit in with his personality. _Neither does his love for Shakespeare either, but still. _

Rukia wonders for a split second if he wrote it for her, but when she reads it again and sees that he thinks she's more beautiful than anyone, she has her doubts. Her released sword has been called beautiful on numerous occasions, but those aren't words she's ever heard anybody other than Isshin and Keigo using to describe herself. Rukia takes a deep breath, her mood to draw her brother and Matsumoto is ruined.

She isn't sure what she should do next. Should she hide the note under several sheets of paper and pretend she never saw it, or should she confront him about it? She walks away from the desk and sits on the bed glaring at the offending note. If he felt strongly about someone other than her, then she really shouldn't be here. She knows she cannot just stand there and watch as he does stuff with another girl. It would make her heart feel like it wanted to pop out of her body every minute of every day.

Rukia can feel tears still coming down her face, and she is torn on what action she should take. She does and she doesn't want to leave for Soul Society and never come back without another word. She wants to because then she'll never have to see Ichigo looking at some other girl with love in his eyes. She doesn't want to because maybe she's interpreting it wrong. It wouldn't be the first time she had done something like this in regards to something in the living world. _Maybe it was an assignment!_

Rukia's heart drops as she can't even imagine what kind of assignment would be handed out to make a guy like Ichigo write words like these. She has always believed he was as out of touch with his emotions as she. She felt a connection with him due to their similarities. She understood the walls he put up because she herself has put up identical walls. _Still, what if I'm misunderstanding? Even though it's not to me, it doesn't mean he's going to ever be with this person…except that it would kill me to know he feels that strongly for any girl. It would eat away at me and eat away at me and…_

Rukia isn't the type of person who snoops, and she certainly isn't the kind of person who would try to hide the fact that she had discovered something this personal. He has a right to know she's seen it, and she should apologize for invading his privacy. If he had wanted her to know about these feelings that he has, then he would have told her, but he did not. She's only feeling this lousy because she read something that she should not have read.

She decides to go for a long walk and think about things. She'll write him a letter before she does though, and at least apologize to him for intruding on his privacy. She puts the note back into the drawer so that no other eyes unintentionally see it. She grabs a blank sheet of paper, and then she quickly and eloquently writes a note of her own.

_Ichigo,_

_I am out taking a walk, if you get here and I'm not back yet, I think there's something I need to apologize for. While you were gone, I was feeling bored and thought it would be fun to draw. (you're lucky I'm not here or I'd hit you for the expression you probably have on your face after my last sentence) I rummaged through your drawers and found the colored pencils. That got me pretty excited and so I found paper and I pulled out a big stack of it for my drawing session ._

_Well, wouldn't you know it, but I kept fucking up my drawing. I had something very specific in mind and it wouldn't come out right on paper. Don't roll your eyes, I think it's a piece that had I been able to complete, you might have enjoyed, but that is neither here nor there. I kept starting over when I unintentionally came across a love letter in the stack of papers that I had pulled out. I saw the first line before I realized what I had come across. I am ashamed to say that I intruded on your life though when I made the decision to read the rest of it. My curiosity won out over my manners._

_Those were your own personal thoughts and I had no right whatsoever to read what was obviously a very personal and emotional letter. I truly feel terrible for invading your space. I had no right whatsoever to do so, and my only excuse is that I couldn't look away. I don't typically go through other people's things. I am in a truly self loathing mood right now, hence the need to go for a walk. Please, don't be mad at me, I am truly sorry. I hope you can find a way to forgive me for my rudeness._

_I have no idea how long I'll be gone. Don't worry about me._

_Rukia._

Rukia stands and jumps out of the window. She hops across roofs until she comes to the edge of Karakura Town. There's a tree, outside of Karakura Town that is amazingly tall, and she wants to sit there and try to clear her mind. She is not in the mood to run into any acquaintances, and she sure as heck doesn't want to see Ichigo right now.

_Ichigo, who was that letter written to? Who do you believe is more beautiful than anyone in all the realms? Why haven't I noticed you have such deep feelings for another person?_

Rukia briefly considers all of the women that Ichigo knows that are attractive. He had been peeking when Matsumoto acted like she might flash him, but she hadn't truly thought that Ichigo was in love with her. She wonders if the letter is to someone she doesn't know. She knows lots of boys think Inoue is beautiful, but Rukia has never noticed Ichigo paying any particular attention to her.

Rukia has arrived at her destination. She looks up, up, up, to the tip top of the gigantic tree. She starts hopping up the branches and goes as high as she possibly can without having branches snap on her. She isn't very heavy, so she's able to make it very close to the top. She leans against the trunk while sitting on the branch and wonders how long ago Ichigo wrote the letter she had found. What if it's two years old and he forgot he had it? What if she's making a big deal out of nothing?_ Because two years ago it's highly unlikely he would have written that he thinks someone is the most beautiful in all the realms._

Rukia sighs and wonders what the hell she's supposed to do now, she can practically feel her heart breaking into pieces.

_In Ichigo's Room…_

Ichigo opens the door, and walks in.

"Rukia." Ichigo can't feel her reiatsu, but to be sure, he slides open the closet. _She's not here_.

He wonders if a hollow came by. He's in the middle of wondering that when he looks down and sees a letter on his desk from Rukia. He feels his heart fall to the floor. There was only one other time she was gone and a letter had been left on his desk. When she'd left him.

He quickly yanks open the envelope and begins to read her letter. He smirks at the beginning of her letter, but when she gets around to her real reason for leaving it, he feels his heart practically stop.

_Oh no!_

Ichigo quickly uses his badge to yank his spiritual self out of the window and goes on the hunt for Rukia. She isn't anywhere near his house, he can sense her direction but he can't pinpoint her location, which makes using Shunpo difficult. He doesn't know what he'll say or do when he finds her, but her letter to him had really disturbed him. If she had actually read his own letter, why was she avoiding him? He was so certain his own feelings would be returned, that it would be a mutual love.

_Does this mean she doesn't want to be with me? I won't let her walk out of my life!_

Ichigo keeps getting closer and closer to her and suddenly he passes her. He doesn't know exactly how he managed it but now her reiatsu is behind him. He wonders if she sensed him coming and bolted. _No, that isn't it. She isn't moving._ His eyes widen at that thought. Suddenly he has a feeling and he looks up. He can sense her reiatsu from behind him and very high up. She's still here though, she isn't in Soul Society. He hates it when she's there because it feels like she's out of reach.

He jumps up until he spots her and her eyes widen when he jumps up in front of her and lands on the branch she's sitting on. In his soul form, the branch holds under his weight and she looks up at him standing before her. Ichigo doesn't understand why it looks like she has been crying.

"Why are you here?" Ichigo finally asks her. Rukia looks startled by that question.

"I like being in high places." She tells him, surprised she even had to say that. He hops down and sits on the branch next to her.

"Must be because you're so short that you have this insane desire to be as high up as you can be." Ichigo says absentmindedly. Rukia just stares at him. She isn't sure why he isn't swearing at her for her lack of respect for his privacy. _Maybe he hasn't read the letter yet?_

"Ichigo, there's something you should know. I left a letter but you probably didn't-" Rukia starts but Ichigo holds up his hand and she stops.

"I read it." Ichigo tells her, watching her face closely. She looks away and sighs.

"Then get it over with," Rukia says tightly. Ichigo's eyes widen in confusion.

"Huh?" He asks her.

"Yell at me and get it over with." Rukia says as a tear falls down her face.

"Why are you crying?" Ichigo asks her, unable to understand where her head is at right now.

"What I did was wrong. I shouldn't have read past that first sentence." Rukia says as more tears roll down her cheeks.

"You weren't kidding when you said you were in a state of self loathing, were you?" Ichigo asks, watching her wide eyed.

"Why aren't you saying anything about what I did?" Rukia finally asks.

"Why aren't you saying anything about what I wrote?" Ichigo asks back, softly. Rukia snaps her gaze back at him. She feels like he is dicing her heart up into teeny tiny pieces right now.

"What am I supposed to say about that?" Rukia asks him bitterly. Ichigo nearly falls off of his branch.

"What do you mean?" He asks her, horrified. She wonders why he is trying to torture her like this. She looks at him for a long moment before she answers.

"It seemed very unlike you to write a letter that was so emotionally strong," Rukia manages to force out. It's difficult, but she's able to say it. "I was wondering when you wrote it." Rukia says shakily, dreading the answer.

"I wrote it a few weeks ago," Ichigo tells her, wondering why she's asking that.

"Oh," Rukia whispers. She doesn't say anything, she looks away, but she can't stop her body from reacting to her heartbreak. Ichigo watches as her breathing becomes more loud and she is growing more upset by the second.

"Of all the responses I thought I might get from you, that was not it." Ichigo says, as he looks away.

"Ichigo, I'm sure that when you finish your letter and give it to the girl it's intended to, that she'll love it, but that is all I'm going to say." Rukia says in between sobs.

"The girl it's intended…Rukia…" Ichigo finally understands. She doesn't think he was writing that for her. He doesn't know how to proceed. How can she think he would write a letter for anyone other than her? Didn't he make a grand gesture when he saved her at Soukyoku? Didn't his actions scream out his feelings loud and clear? He closes his eyes in disbelief before telling her what she needs to know. "I wouldn't write a letter like that for anybody other than you."

Rukia's head snaps up, and she can practically feel her heart's pieces flying back into place at an alarming rate, and it's having a rather dizzying effect on her stomach. She remembers the words though and refuses to let herself completely believe.

"Don't lie to me. There is no way I am the most beautiful woman of any realm." Rukia says in a very soft voice. Ichigo pulls his gaze off the lower branches and looks at her to glare at her.

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. That's why you didn't think it was for you? Who else could I possibly love?" Ichigo asks her in a raised voice. Rukia is shaking from the realization dawning on her.

"You think I'm…beautiful?" Rukia asks in a near squeak.

"Isn't that usually what people think about the light of their life?" Ichigo asks her softly. Rukia blushes. Now she's embarrassed, feeling stupid, and completely unsure of herself.

"I didn't think you would write something like that about me." Rukia finally says, when it seems he's waiting for her answer.

"Well I did, and it's about time you responded." Ichigo says in a hard voice. Rukia flinches a second but then she realizes that he's feeling a helpless as she was feeling just moments ago. She finds her first smile since finishing his letter.

"I was crying because I thought you wrote that letter to someone else. Because if you were in love with someone else, I didn't know how I was going to get through it. I wasn't sure I could handle watching you love someone else…because of how much I love you." Rukia tells him. Ichigo breathes a sigh of relief. He grabs her up and hops to the ground. He doesn't set her down, he stares into her eyes for a minute enjoying the feel of her in his arms. She has her arms around his neck and he squeezes both her arm and her leg where his hands are secured. He leans down to his right and kisses her.

She squirms in his arms as he starts coaxing her to open her mouth. After a short struggle, she gives him access with a sigh. He holds her and kisses her for a long minute. He looks at her and grins.

"I'm glad you found the letter, otherwise this probably wouldn't have happened." Ichigo tells her. Rukia nods.

"Does this mean we can be together forever?" Rukia asks him shyly. Ichigo smiles at her and nods his head yes. Rukia smiles and snuggles her head onto his shoulder. He starts to shunpo home but he stops to give her a stern look in the eyes.

"I hope you really meant that, because that's exactly what I had in mind." Ichigo tells her. Rukia snaps her head away from his shoulder and looks up.

"What?" Rukia asks.

"I wouldn't last long without you, don't you know that? Don't you ever leave me." Ichigo says in a low and husky voice.

"As if I could." Rukia scoffs and rests her head on Ichigo's shoulder. "Take me home," she orders. Ichigo grins, because he knows she doesn't mean Soul Society.

"With pleasure." Ichigo says before taking off at lightning speed.

_I'll never let you go._

Neither one realize the other is thinking the exact same thing.


	23. As Requested: Truth Serum 2

_**A/N: This was a request and so if you haven't read Truth Serum, go back and read that chapter before you read this one. Enjoy!**_

_As Requested: Truth Serum Part 2_

Rukia smiles as she fingers the syringe with the truth serum in it. Byakuya had been true to his word and had made sure she'd gotten it quickly. Rukia feels a tiny twinge of guilt since she can clearly remember how uncomfortable it is to be under the influence of this stuff, however, just because they confessed to one another doesn't mean he's shared as many personal things as she had been forced to share from his one question.

_What have you been hiding from me?_

That one question had been her undoing, and she was damned sure going to return the favor. She wonders when she should give him the injection. She should probably do it at night and away from his house. She wonders if a walk to the park to look at the stars would be too much of a giveaway. She's impatient, since she's been burning with embarrassment ever since she had said _all_ of the things that she had said to him to answer that one question.

Her face burns when she remembers some of the sexual confessions she had made. It killed her pride that she had been forced into such an undignified and helpless situation, and she still hasn't spoken to any of the women from the League of Women Shinigami since the shit they pulled. She isn't unhappy with the results, after all, Ichigo appeared to take pity on her plight and even though she had confessed all sorts of horrendously embarrassing things to him, he still admitted he felt the same way she did and he had kissed her.

They've kissed since then too. Despite her wanton confession, she sure as heck hasn't let him do much more than kiss and hold her since that day since her pride won't allow her to. She will know _exactly_ what's in his heart before she allows him to metaphorically slide his sword into her sheath. She hasn't told him this and he hasn't asked. When she thought his hands were moving for her womanly attributes, she had grabbed his hands and squeezed them not so gently and had ordered him not to rush things.

Rukia didn't care if it was confusing for him. He may know he drives her crazy and makes her hot, but she will take control over this one sided discomfort very soon, and once she does she will finally be able to let her own humiliation go. It may not make sense, but in her mind, it's the only way to move on.

Rukia doesn't know how she can hide the syringe either. She absentmindedly walks into Karin and Yuzu's room to see if there are any dresses in there that have a pocket. It's no use. Rukia will have to do it while they're in Shinigami form, and it will have to be when she can grab this syringe before they leave to kill hollows.

Rukia's eyes light up as she comes up with a plan.

_In under a half hour Ichigo, you will learn what it's like to be asked such a personal question while under the influence of this insanely strong truth serum._

Rukia walks back to Ichigo's room and grabs her spirit phone before she hops out the window onto his roof. She decides the best person to help her is the same one who's helped her this far. She calls her brother.

"Rukia?" Byakuya asks questioningly as he answers his phone.

"Ni-sama. Will you please do me a favor?" Rukia asks as she smiles.

"What?" Byakuya asks, knowing she was delivered the package today.

"In fifteen minutes can you send a fake hollow alert through to my phone? Make it say that we need to go to the roof of the school to kill a hollow." Rukia tells him. Byakuya grins from his end, and he wonders if it's audible.

"No problem." Byakuya says before hanging up. Rukia does the same. Rukia looks at the syringe again, and she grins.

"Now it's your turn, I want to see how much you like having that question asked while you are unable to lie." Rukia mutters before she uses her gikongan to pop out of her body for an instant as she hides the syringe on her soul form. She gets back into her gigai and hops back into Ichigo's room.

She eyes the bed warily and stays away from it. Now that they've confessed, she's been avoiding his bed as much as she possibly can. She's not so stupid to believe that Ichigo doesn't have the power to make her forget her stubborn pride and bend her to his will if given the opportunity. He's already come close to shattering her vow of abstinence until she knows everything he's hiding from her for equality in their partnership. It's just way too unfair that he has such expansive knowledge of her personal feelings, desires, and thoughts.

The Shinigami occupying her thoughts enters the room and the first thing he sees is Rukia glaring angrily at the bed. He's not sure why she's doing that, but her glare makes him cautious.

"Rukia?" Ichigo asks as he walks into the room.

"Ichigo." Rukia answers, tearing her gaze away from the bed that invites her to think sensual and intimate things.

"What are you doing?" Ichigo asks, not sure of her mood.

"Nothing much." Rukia answers as lightly as she can. She offers him a smile.

"You looked angry when I walked in," Ichigo says warily. "Did my bed do something to piss you off?" Ichigo asks next, wincing when she throws him an icy glare. He's way too close to the truth.

"Not particularly, I just happened to be looking in that direction while remembering some things." Rukia snaps at him before walking over to the closet, hopping in and shutting the closet door. She looks at her phone. She still has five minutes before the fake alert. She hears Ichigo shuffle around his room and then she hears him settle into his chair. She wonders if he is staring at the closet.

Ichigo sighs as he crosses one calf over his other thigh and looks intently at the closet. Even though the truth serum had brought them together and they had confessed, he felt like she was deliberately keeping him at a distance. The things she had said had been like a huge blow to her pride, and he could tell. He wishes she would stop being mad and just forget about it.

He grimaces when he remembers what she said as they were leaving Soul Society to come home.

_Payback is a bitch._

Ichigo still feels a bit of unease in his stomach since he's pretty sure she'll make good on her word and pay him back. He sighs as he wonders how long until she comes out of the closet. He wonders if he should go and open the door. He figures one of two things will happen, he'll either end up being punched or he'll end up being kissed. The temptation of the latter is enough to make him stand up and take a step towards the closet.

"_**Beep beep! Beep beep! Beep beep! Beep beep!"**_

"Hollow!" Ichigo says as Rukia busts out of the closet in her spirit form. Ichigo pops himself out of his body too. This at least he's used to.

"Come on!" Rukia says impatiently.

"Where is it?" He asks her as he follows her out of the window.

"On top of the school!" Rukia says as they shunpo their way to the school.

When they arrive, Ichigo and Rukia stop and Rukia pretends to be looking around.

"Where is it, Rukia?" Ichigo asks worriedly. The moment he turns away to look again, Rukia pulls the syringe out, removes the protective cover from the needle and calls out a binding spell.

"Way of Binding number four! Crawling Rope!" Rukia cries out and watches in satisfaction as Ichigo is held tight by her kidou. He struggles unsuccessfully when he sees what is in her hand.

"Rukia! Stop this!" Ichigo shouts at her as she comes closer, and he sees she's smiling.

"Don't worry Ichigo. Soon, you'll understand." Rukia tells him. She injects the syringe into his arm in the same place Nemu had injected her. She dissolves her binding the moment the serum flows into his blood stream. Ichigo glares at her angrily.

"Why are you doing this? It's not like I was the one who injected you, this is a huge violation of trust." Ichigo mutters, doing his best to make her feel terribly.

"Well, if you had not asked me that one devastating question when I was in no condition to hold back, then I wouldn't have resorted to this." Rukia admits honestly. Ichigo snorts. She notices he looks terribly nervous.

"What about the hollow?" Ichigo asks next.

"That was a fake alert. To get you here to this secluded place so that I could get you under the influence of this serum. I needed to have privacy with you.

"What's to stop me from running away from you?" Ichigo asks her next, his eyes boring into hers.

"Nothing, I suppose. Maybe you're only still sitting there because you know you owe it to me to do exactly that." Rukia says softly. Ichigo's eyes widen and he purses his lips. She watches as several different emotions run across his face. Embarrassment, guilt, regret, and worry. She watches as he takes a deep breath and lets his shoulders slump.

"If it will get you to stop acting distant then I won't run." Ichigo tells her quietly. "How long does it take for this stuff to take effect?" He asks next. Rukia gives him a sympathetic look.

"Not long. I'll be asking you your one question soon enough." Rukia tells him as she bites her lip. Ichigo's face turns white and she forces herself to keep from smiling.

They sit in silence for several minutes before Rukia finally turns to him.

"This isn't the question, but do you feel anything?" She asks him. Ichigo looks at her and nods a little bit.

"I feel a bit weird." Ichigo says with a nod. Rukia nods back at him and takes a deep breath as he has an almost terrified look on his face. She can tell he wants to run.

"I think you're ready." Rukia tells him. She can hear him swallow and she really does feel bad since she knows exactly what it's like.

"You're probably right." Ichigo says back as Rukia ponders for a second. She takes an audible breath and looks at him with big eyes.

"The truth is that hearing your answer is scaring me." Rukia whispers quietly. Ichigo sighs. He knows she's still going to ask.

"Just get it over with." Ichigo says in a defeated voice. "You went through all of this, so just do it already."

"I'm sorry, Ichigo, I really am. Here goes. What have you been hiding from me?" Rukia asks him softly. Ichigo's eyes widen. Eye for an eye, just like Rukia. Before he can stop himself, he's already answering the question.

"The happiness you bring to my life is something I didn't experience for nearly six long years. From the time my mother died until the day I met you, my life was filled with nothing but anger and misery. When my mom died, it was like there was a constant depressing rain in my life, and when you stepped into my life, for the first time, I felt the sun shining." Ichigo starts in a soft voice. His eyes are closed and Rukia's eyes soften happily at his words. She can feel her heart racing in her chest.

"Now I'm not regretting using the serum." Rukia says as Ichigo continues.

"When I met you, I felt very drawn to you, but my interest quickly turned into love. Especially now, when I think back on what you were actually giving me in order to save my family. When your brother and Renji came to take you away, I was so terrified that I would lose the only person who had the ability to make my life bright again. I felt like shit until I learned from Urahara that you could be saved." Ichigo tells her.

"Wow," Rukia breathes. Ichigo goes on.

"Every time I needed my resolve, all I had to do was say out loud that I had to save you, and I felt ten times more powerful. It was my desire to save both you and Sado that gave me the strength to finally be able to cut Kenpachi. After I fought him, I was pretty messed up, and Yoruichi was in the process of healing me when she revealed that she had gotten me to safety by returning to her original form. I was shocked and she transformed into a naked girl right in front of me. Needless to say I was very uncomfortable." Ichigo says, a blush tinting his cheeks.

"Naked." Rukia repeats softly. Ichigo keeps going.

"Then I felt your brother's reiatsu and I rushed to come save you, Ganju, and Hanatarou. When I first saw you on the bridge, my first thought was that even though I hadn't appreciated Yoruichi's exposure of her body to me, I would really like it if you did that. That's the true reason I bowed to you and then went to talk to Hanatarou. It was to give myself a chance to get a grip. I was really upset that you kept telling me not to save you, and that you didn't understand that I would rather die then to sit by and watch you die. If you're not in my life, then it really isn't worth living." Ichigo admits in a very quiet voice.

"Ichigo." Rukia says feelingly.

"I was hoping you'd rush into my arms and hug me, and tell me how happy you were to see me, but you were more worried about me dying and so you didn't do any of the things I imagined that you might. I worked so hard to save you and it really ticked me off that you didn't have faith in me to beat your uptight ass of a brother. It really hurt when you said you were staying in Soul Society, even though I completely understood why." Ichigo says next. Rukia breathes deeply as she takes in everything he's saying.

"I didn't stay gone for that long." Rukia whispers.

"Every night I dreamed of you, and every day I wished you were back here with me. I don't like my life when you're not sharing it with me, and I was incredibly happy when I next saw you here. I hadn't been expecting it and I wasn't sure if I was seeing things or if you were really here. I have had all kinds of thoughts of what it would be like to be intimate with you, since you are everything to me. I think you're the sexiest girl I've ever met, but it's partly because of your attitude. I respect you and appreciate you in ways you've never even realized." Ichigo says finally glancing up at her.

"Ichigo." Rukia says. Ichigo isn't finished though.

"I would do practically anything for you. I worry every day what I'll do if you decide to leave me, and never come back. When I picture my future, you're always the one I picture next to me. There have been times where I was even jealous of the closeness you shared with Renji, but I always forced myself not to let it bug me, but I think his feelings for you run beyond friendship. My inner hollow was getting out of control and it wasn't until you were attacked in front of my eyes and I was powerless to stop it that I gained the resolve to control that inner hollow of mine. Every power up I've gained, every level I've climbed it was all because of you." Ichigo whispers.

"Your truth is so beautiful and mine was-" Rukia starts to say but Ichigo only stopped to get some air. He wasn't done yet.

"The first time I saw your released sword as that damned Chappy was holding me down, I thought in my head that you must be the only girl for me. Your Sode No Shirayuki and my Zangetsu though they look totally opposite, fit together just right. Just like you and me. I knew after I realized you were my soul mate that I had to get stronger to protect you. I hated it when you were dragged back to Soul Society when Inoue was taken, and I was so happy when you arrived in time to save my ass in Hueco Mundo. When I felt your reiatsu fade, it screwed with my head and my heart in a dangerous way. I never want to be apart from you. I just want to keep on loving you forever. You're the only one who turns me on and the only one I can see myself with for the rest of my life." Ichigo tells her softly.

"Please tell me you're done." Rukia says quietly. Her answer is more of his talking.

"I haven't had any intimate experiences with any girl besides you. I have no sexual experience, and I'm really nervous about whether or not you will be happy when we finally do make love. There have been one or two times where I opened the closet door hoping to catch you without your clothes on, and I secretly think your Chappy fetish is cute. I like it when you hit me and keep me in line, and I want to say things to you, but I usually chicken out." Ichigo says, as he starts rubbing his head nervously.

"You like my Chappy fetish!" Rukia says with a smile.

"I like everything about you, I wouldn't change anything about you even if I could. I have always thought I was lucky that the most amazing girl landed in my life and chooses to stick around." Ichigo says in a near whisper. "I get jealous when other guys flirt with you and I have wondered before what it would be like to give you an orgasm. If you ever let me try to seduce you, I hope you tell me what you like and don't like so that I make it good for you. It doesn't matter what you do, just being with you is enough for me." Ichigo admits. His throat feels dry. He can feel it. One more thing he has to say. "I worry about hurting you though, since my sword isn't the only thing about me that's big."

He breathes deeply and can't feel the urge to speak anymore. He can feel his cheeks are burning in embarrassment at all of the things he just said to her, but when he looks up, she's sitting there crying."Rukia, are you okay?" Ichigo asks hoarsely.

"Most of what you were hiding from me was how much I mean to you! I feel like such a jerk now!" Rukia says as she cries. Ichigo crawls over and kisses her.

"I chose to stay here. I knew what I was hiding from you." Ichigo tells her softly. Rukia looks up at him with quivering eyes.

"You weren't going anywhere even if you tried. I was prepared to do a triple binding spell just to get you to answer my question." Rukia admits pitifully. Ichigo chuckles.

"That's my girl for you." Ichigo says as he pulls her up to her feet.

"I'm ready now, so please take me to bed." Rukia tells him. Ichigo looks into her eyes and smiles. He gathers her in his arms and gets her back into his bedroom quickly. When they start kissing, Rukia makes the mistake of asking him what he wants her to do.

This postpones the action for close to five minutes as Ichigo describes in detail all of the things he would like for her to do to him as she asked.

When she is finally closing her eyes to sleep, she lays naked in Ichigo's arms and thinks happily.

_There's something to be said for making love when you can't lie. The things he said to me!_

She had most liked what he'd said as he had entered her. _You are so warm, so tight, so beautiful, and oh my god you feel so good. So good I can't even describe it. _Rukia sighs and falls asleep happily.

She doesn't wake up until she hears Ichigo's father screaming as he discovers them in bed together. Unfortunately for Ichigo the truth serum effect wasn't gone yet.

"What is going on here?" Isshin had asked in a shout.

Needless to say, Isshin got quite an earful, and not one person in the house was immune to blushing fiercely at all of the things that came out of Ichigo's mouth that morning. He stayed mad at Rukia for a week before he forgave her.


	24. First Date

_First Date_

Ichigo sweats. It's summer vacation and he finally told Rukia exactly how he felt for her the day before yesterday. She had been shocked that he'd finally opened up to her, but after a moment she'd given him a beautiful smile and she had admitted that she returned his very strong romantic feelings of love. He had kissed her and she had leaned in and wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back.

He was still a bit surprised that it hadn't been awkward. After they'd pulled away breathlessly, he had asked her out on a real date. He had asked her to Karakura Town's Summer Festival. This is where he planned to make their debut to his friends as a couple. They didn't have specific plans to meet his friends there, but Ichigo planned on keeping Rukia on their date for most of the afternoon and evening, so they were bound to be spotted by his friends. That day was today and the date was set to start at three in the afternoon.

Her eyes had lit up at his suggestion and she had asked him what she should wear for an event like that. He had given her a longing smile and told her he had really liked the kimono she had worn in Soul Society, right before he'd left after saving her. Rukia had given him a pleased smile and she had disappeared yesterday afternoon to go shopping for a kimono for her first date with Ichigo. She refused to let him see it until they were on their date though. Ichigo hadn't minded, her eyes had looked so bright and happy, and perhaps even a little bit mischievous.

Now it's nearly time for their date, and he was nervous but he is also anticipating what a date with Rukia will be like. She had taken over his room a half hour ago, telling him she needed privacy. He was sitting at the kitchen table waiting for her, dressed in a new shirt and a nice pair of pants. His hair is the same as always, but his wallet is much fatter today than it usually is.

When his father had heard he finally asked Rukia on a date, his dad had pressed a large wad of money in his hands. He had grinned at Ichigo and told him to be sure Rukia had a great time. Ichigo had grinned at his father instead of hitting him for once and had nodded his head in agreement.

She should be walking into the room, ready to go any second now. Ichigo hopes nothing goes wrong on their first date. Then he amends that thought and hopes nothing ever goes wrong on _any_ date he's on with Rukia.

Karin walks into the doorway and leans up against it with her arms crossed.

"I wonder if anybody else can claim to have their date get ready in their room for their first date." Karin remarks in a voice that's tinged with amusement.

"Shut up! Rukia's not a normal girl." Ichigo remarks and then groans at the way it sounded.

"Of course not, no normal girl would have you." Karin says back, pleased with her quick retort.

"Is that supposed to bother me? Normal girls annoy the hell out me, and that includes you. Go away." Ichigo tells her, not needing this conversation before his date.

"I guess then that we should all be really grateful that she popped into your life, otherwise you might have started to experiment with guys." Karin says as she turns and walks away. Ichigo sends an angry glare in her direction. As she gets older, she gets more and more rude. Ichigo wonders where she picked that up from, as he scowls.

"You look ready!" Isshin says as he pops into the room with a huge smile on his face. "Where's Rukia-chan?"

"She should be down here any second." Ichigo says, still annoyed by his sister's remark. Isshin gives Ichigo a pointed stare.

"Try not to start your date with a sour attitude." Isshin warns him. Ichigo swallows and nods.

"I can only do that if you keep Karin away from me until I get back." Ichigo warns him and his father chuckles.

"Her tongue sure has gotten much sharper, thanks to you." Isshin says to Ichigo, causing Ichigo to glance up in surprise. He doesn't like that his father said that.

"She did not learn that from me." Ichigo protests, without much confidence, even as he wonders if what his father said was true.

"Where else would she have learned it?" Isshin asks, exasperated.

"You're bugging me too. Go away." Ichigo mutters. Isshin does it for Rukia's well being.

Luckily for Ichigo, Rukia appears in the doorway a second later, looking very beautiful in a light blue kimono with large purple flowers. She gives him a big smile and he immediately forgets his family issues. Her hair is up and in clips and she looks very dressy and attractive.

"Rukia, wow." Ichigo says, taking in her appearance with wide appreciative eyes. Rukia grins at his reaction. It was exactly what she had been hoping for when she'd picked out this kimono and styled her hair. She had hoped his eyes would widen and he would look excited.

"I'm glad you like it. Shall we go?" Rukia asks him. Ichigo walks over to her and takes her hand and squeezes it a bit.

"Sure." He tells her as he looks down at her with a small smile playing at his lips. "I hope you have fun today." Ichigo tells her before they head for the door. She squeezes his hand back.

"I don't doubt that I will." Rukia says as they walk out the door. His whole family had appeared when Rukia had entered the kitchen, not that Ichigo or Rukia had taken much notice. Isshin offers his girls a smile as the door shuts behind them. _Finally_. Isshin thinks as he hopes nothing screws up his son's first date with the girl he loves.

Ichigo keeps glancing at his beautiful date as they make their way towards the festival. It isn't two minutes after they leave his house when Tatsuki and Inoue notice them from across the street.

Rukia and Ichigo hadn't noticed them though until they ran across the street to greet them. Tatsuki has a dumbfounded look on her face as she looks at their clasped hands. She notices Rukia is smiling calmly and Ichigo is not meeting her gaze although he's blushing a bit as he looks a bit to the left and over her head.

"Are you guys dating?" Tatsuki finally managed to say in a near squeak. Inoue just looks at them with a wide eyed shocked look as she waits for a response from one of the two of them. Rukia is still smiling and Ichigo clears his throat nervously.

"Yes." Ichigo tells her, feeling a bit uncomfortable, although he's pretty sure it's because of Tatsuki's expression. "What?" Ichigo finally asks her.

"Nothing." Tatsuki says after she finally closes her mouth.

"It's our first date." Rukia supplies with a smile. She feels Ichigo's hold on her hand tighten just a tiny bit. "We're headed to the festival." She informs them. Tatsuki just nods wordlessly and Inoue looks at them with desperation in her eyes.

"Oh." Inoue finally says in a very depressed sounding voice when Tatsuki says nothing.

"What's your problem?" Ichigo asks both of them, a bit annoyed at their reaction. He doesn't get why they both look a little bit disappointed that he's on a date.

"Nothing, I was just surprised. I was always under the impression you were just friends. Seeing you holding hands was a bit of a shock." Tatsuki says, feeling a bit like a jerk for her seemingly negative reaction.

"Things change." Ichigo says shortly before pulling Rukia around the both of them. "Some friends they are." Ichigo mutters under his breath after they pass them. Rukia looks up at Ichigo and tries to forget the way the girls looked unhappy at the news, after all she's with Ichigo on her first date and she's dreamed about this for so long. They will _not_ ruin it for her. They finally make it to the festival and Rukia seems very enchanted with it all.

Ichigo smiles with satisfaction as she looks around wide eyed at all the games, rides, food, and people. He can practically feel the excitement exuding from her body and he grins. He takes her over to where they're selling caramel covered apples and he buys her one. Rukia's eyes widen with pleasure over the wondrous taste of this treat.

They walk around for a little while until they run into Mizuiro who's with two of his older girlfriends. They appear to be arguing over something as they both try to pull him closer. Mizuiro's eye light up with relief when he sees them at the distraction of it.

"Ichigo! Kuchiki-san! You're here together? Like on a date?" He asks them with a smile. The girls stop arguing and look at the couple that currently has their younger boyfriend's attention. They watch as the very short dark haired girl blushes and nods her head yes. Then they look up at Mizuiro's bright haired friend next.

"Yes, I invited her on a date to the festival." Ichigo tells Mizuiro. His friend smiles happily at him.

"It took you long enough, haven't you had a thing for her for ages?" He asks. Rukia smiles at this. She's had a thing for Ichigo for ages too.

"Come on Mizuiro, I want something to eat." One girl tells him as she tugs on his arm possessively.

"I want you to win me a prize!" The other girl tells him. Mizuiro give Ichigo a sheepish and apologetic look as the girls drag him away. He doesn't appeared to be too broken up about it though.

"You weren't kidding when you called him a womanizer, he really is exactly that." Rukia says, looking up at Ichigo. He grins at her before pulling her towards some rides.

"Want to go on a ride?" He asks her. She grins.

"Sure," Rukia tells him with a smile. He takes her to an exciting one for the carnival where you sit in a car and it goes all the way around, spinning you upside down. She loves that so much she screams as they fly around and she loves the sensation of it. When they get off the ride, Keigo, who was in line spots them. He runs out of his place in line to greet them. His eyes are wide as he can't take his gaze off of them.

"Ichigo!" Keigo yells as he stops short in front of them. He eyes them both and looks at Rukia in her kimono. Ichigo is relieved he didn't have to deck Keigo since he had stopped before trying to run them over. Ichigo is sure this is because Rukia is standing there.

"Yo." Ichigo says to him, when Keigo doesn't speak.

"Are you guys on a date?" Keigo asks with apparent sadness in his eyes. He looks like he might even cry.

"Yep. So give up on her already." Ichigo says in a growl. Keigo nods his head dejectedly.

"I guess I don't have a choice now, since she's already made up her mind. It's too bad." Keigo says. He sighs and walks away forgetting he had wanted to ride the ride they had just gotten off of. Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"He's hopeless." Ichigo tells her. Rukia laughs as Ichigo leads her over to some food. It's there that they run into Ishida and Sado, neither of them are surprised by the news that they're dating, but they are surprised Ichigo brought Rukia somewhere so public for their first date, and even more than that, he's holding her hand.

They both wonder what kind of comments the two have had to hear since they started on their date today. Sado and Ishida give each other a knowing glance before breaking out into smiles for the couple.

"Congratulations." Ishida had said after they'd made their announcement. Sado had nodded his head in agreement.

"I'm glad," Sado had remarked.

"Thanks." Rukia had said for both of them.

"Have you seen Inoue yet?" Ishida asks next as he looks a bit concerned and pushes up his glasses in a nervous type gesture.

"Yes, we saw her while we were on our way here, she was with Tatsuki." Ichigo tells him, and Ishida nods.

"Was she heading here?" Ishida asks next, he thinks he'll keep an eye out for her.

"I have no idea, we didn't ask." Ichigo answers. He stops talking to them since it's their turn to order food. Sado and Ishida walk off since they don't want to intrude on a first date. Ichigo and Rukia are uninterrupted for quite awhile and they very much enjoy that.

He wins her a teddy bear, and a stuffed purple rabbit, which she appears to cherish. She rewards him with a kiss for each prize he wins her too. He takes her to sample all different kinds of food and lets her play many games.

Ichigo and Rukia find a guy who you can pay to throw pies at and they both take part in it. Rukia nails the guy in the face with the pie and hugs Ichigo in reaction. The moment they pull away, someone pokes Ichigo's shoulder and he turns around.

"Sensei!" Ichigo says in surprise. Rukia's eyes widen, but she smiles anyways. Their teacher grins at them and she looks at them approvingly.

"I always suspected to two were an item. Remember you have to do something exciting to make it memorable!" She says with a grin before walking away, leaving the two of them red faced.

Ichigo and Rukia finally leave the festival, filled from food and fun. As they're on their way home, they run into one last classmate, Chizuru. She squeals in excitement at the news.

"How great! I was wondering when you two would finally hook up, it's been obvious that you were into each other for the longest time! Now I have to find Orihime!" Chizuru sings as she quickly dances off. Ichigo and Rukia grin as they shake their heads. Ichigo smiles over how smoothly everything went and with how often he'd gotten to see her smile.

"Thank you for coming with me tonight, I am lucky to have such a beautiful date." Ichigo whispers as they approach his home. They walk to his front door and Ichigo stops her. There's one more thing he must do before the date ends. He leans down and kisses her. A soft and gentle kiss that quickly turns passionate. He pulls away breathing hard from the sensations that had been invoked from her kiss.

"Thank you for inviting me out," Rukia says happily and breathlessly.

"I look forward to many more firsts with you." Ichigo had confided before opening the door to the greeting of his loud and nosy family.

The first date had been a success, and Ichigo's so relieved he doesn't mind any of his family's remarks. He just catches Rukia's eyes and smiles.

When he's with Rukia, everything just seems perfect and that's why he wants her in his life for all time.


	25. Capturing Strawberry

_Capturing Strawberry_

"Okay, I think we're ready to research!" Rukia says quietly to Chappy who is in her gigai as Rukia sits next to her in soul form. They're at the library in a secluded corner with romantic books, love guides, and several other books that had popped up in the search for love. Chappy is the only one she trusts to help her with such a mission. Rukia immediately puts aside books that deal on love from centuries ago since they probably won't help her at all.

Little do many people know that despite her ripe old age of nearly one hundred and fifty, she has no experience whatsoever on the subject of love, not that it had ever mattered before. The only other man that had ever made her heart race had been married and there had never been a need to do anything other than adore him from afar. Until_ now_ that is.

They spend the day reading from various books. Rukia ends up putting a few away due to the embarrassment they bring. They're more like sex instructions than love advice. All of the information she learns has her brain swimming with thoughts.

She and Ichigo have the typical romantic introduction, she realizes. She had flown into his room and he had mistaken her for a burglar. They had started at odds and now? She blushes as she remembers a few occasions where she had felt the desire to touch him. She remembers other times when she put a hand on his shoulder, hand, or back and how he had never pushed her away.

_Ichigo is clueless._ It's not like she can count on him to make a move on her. She wishes she knew exactly how to go about progressing their friendship to the next level. When the library closes, she goes to the movies to find the most romantic one playing and she sends Chappy back to Ichigo's house as she sneaks into the theatre and watches the latest romance movie.

When she leaves the theatre, she feels just as lost as when she entered the theatre. She decides to walk around to see if any other ideas hit her. She looks wistfully at some of the couples she sees walking together hand in hand. She learns nothing new and decides to sit on a cell phone tower to think. Some of the things she had read and seen today had been enough to make her want to hurl. She was not the kind of girl who would do a lot of the silly things other women do to get a man's attention. She thinks about some of the women she knows who are very good at getting men to fall to their knees in admiration.

Matsumoto Rangiku for instance. Rukia was certain that her physique helped to do a lot of the attracting, but she had something beyond that. Rukia thinks long and hard and the answer finally hits her. Matsumoto is a first class flirt. Rukia wonders if she can learn to flirt, and if so, who would teach her the correct way of doing it? She doesn't want to screw it up, and so she thinks long and hard before she walks around in soul form and she remains at a loss. She finally spots a teenage magazine that has tips on flirting and she thoroughly reads that before tossing it out. It had served to help her quite a bit.

She walks into a park and sits at a bench and whips out her drawing pad and marker. She decides to make a list of what she knows to be flirting. It takes her a long time to come up with what she considers to be a decent list.

_Flirting_

_-bat your eyelashes a lot_

_-smile and laugh a lot while looking at the boy you admire._

_-compliment him_

_-look for excuses to touch him_

_-make extended eye contact with him._

_-try to look nice for him_

_-find common interests to talk about_

_-get him to talk about himself_

_-hint that you like him_

Rukia stares at the list and thinks she's satisfied. She's tickled pink that she was able to figure it out without anybody's help, since she doesn't count the magazine as being someone. She decides to give this flirt mission a code name. She smiles as she comes up with the perfect title. _Capturing Strawberry_. She doesn't hurry back to Ichigo's room though, she walks slowly, formulating her plan.

When she finally gets back into Ichigo's room, she finds he's waiting for her and he's angry.

"What were you thinking, leaving that insane temporary soul to come back here? She made one hell of a commotion around here! Do you have any idea the hell you put me through tonight?" Ichigo is shouting at her, not caring that he might draw his whole family in. Rukia is surprised. She didn't think it was possible Chappy could cause that much commotion.

"What happened?" Rukia asks with concern. Ichigo's eyes narrow angrily at her.

"My father was in here, bugging the hell out of me as usual when she hopped in through the window and then tackled me onto the bed as I stared with my mouth open in shock. My dad flipped out. He fell to his knees and started yelling thank you to the lord and then that freaking temporary soul tackled him! I've never seen my father blush like that before!" Ichigo seethes. Rukia is doing her best to keep from laughing but she's unsuccessful.

She falls to the ground in laughter and she feels her eyes tearing up. Ichigo stands there just glaring, angrier than ever. It takes Rukia a good minute to get a hold of herself before she can finally speak.

"Where's my gigai now?" She asks him. He jerks his finger at the closet.

"There's no soul in it either. I had to get her out of there before I went completely insane." Ichigo says giving her a look that makes her think he wouldn't mind throttling her right now. She thinks maybe now isn't the best time to practice her flirting. She had wanted to get started right away but he's too angry now.

"Sorry for the trouble it caused." Rukia says simply as she stands. Ichigo is astounded. He expected she would yell right back at him and call him pathetic for not being able to handle a temporary soul. Instead she looks kind of sad. He realizes she was gone awhile and wonders if something happened. He starts to feel bad for greeting her by yelling at her now.

"Rukia?" Ichigo asks, his anger suddenly forgotten as he's concerned. "Did something happen?" He asks tenderly as she stands in front of him. "You were gone awhile."

"Not really." Rukia says in a voice that says she is clearly down.

"Tell me, I'll listen." Ichigo insists. He's surprised when Rukia looks up at him with a sad look on her face considering how hard she was laughing a second ago.

"No, you're in a bad mood." Rukia says as she turns towards the closet to get into her gigai. Ichigo stays right behind her.

"No, I _was_ in a bad mood. Now that I've yelled, I feel much better." Ichigo tells her. Rukia wonders if anything on her list would help her right now. She thinks for a moment before answering. She turns around and touches his arm before staring into his eyes.

"I'm glad that you aren't still mad. That's such a wonderful quality." Rukia tells him and then she remembers to smile. She's pleased with herself. She used four of the items on her list right away. Ichigo stares at her as though she's suddenly grown a new head and Rukia frowns.

"Are you feeling okay?" Ichigo asks as he looks at her worried. Rukia is offended.

"Actually, I'm pretty tired. Let me go to sleep." Rukia says dejectedly as she gets back into her gigai and lays down on his makeshift bed. She closes the door without meeting his eyes again. Ichigo just stares at the closet door.

_Did she just compliment me?_

Ichigo shakes his head and lays down. Even with all the commotion her stupid Chappy had caused, it appeared as though she'd had something pretty monumental on her mind, and she might have told him if he hadn't been such a jerk the moment she had arrived. He mentally berates himself for his earlier actions. That's not the way to get the girl to like you.

_The next day…_

Rukia wakes up feeling refreshed. Today is a new day. She hasn't given up on her plan yet. She picks a nice dress she had bought awhile ago but not worn yet for the true start of _Capturing Strawberry. _She's thinking about what she should say to him when she hears him knock on the door.

"Hey, breakfast." He calls out as he knocks. Rukia slides the door open and jumps out. Ichigo's eyes widen at the sight of her in a sexy black and white dress. He's never seen it before.

"Thanks." Rukia says as she accepts the plate from him. "It's really nice of you to do this every day." Rukia adds with a quick smile before she sits at his desk to eat. She doesn't see his quick glance at her. When she finishes eating, she turns to him, but he is looking out the window. He suddenly feels her gaze on him though, and when he turns, he feels a wave of horror.

Rukia is batting her eyelashes at him and smiling. He doesn't know what her game is, but he refuses to be party to another one of her stellar performances. He quickly jerks his gaze back out the window. He hears Rukia sigh in annoyance and he watches out of the corner of his eye as she gets up and walks over next to where he's standing.

"Have you always lived here?" Rukia asks him quietly as she gazes outside with him. Ichigo is taken aback. He thought she was going to screw with him, but now she sounds serious.

"Yeah. All my life." Ichigo tells her. Rukia scrunches up her face as she tries to think of something else she can ask him about himself. Ichigo flinches in surprise when her hand is on his arm all of a sudden.

"You must really love it here, don't you?" Rukia asks softly. Ichigo just nods. He can't figure out why she's acting so weird last night and today. "I love it here too, with you." Rukia says quietly, making Ichigo forget his thoughts. His mouth drops open in surprise.

_Did she just say what I think she did? _He wonders as he feels her hand squeeze his arm gently before she drops it back by her side.

"You do?" Ichigo asks nervously. He takes a step back from her when she gives him a bright smile accompanied by an intense gaze.

"Of course! I'm always happy when I'm with you," Rukia says to him, feeling a bit victorious. She definitely has his attention. She bats her eyelashes some more causing Ichigo to back up some more as he looks at her with a mixture of horror and surprise.

"Why do you keep doing that with your eyelashes?" Ichigo asks as he points towards the offending action. "Is there something in your eyes?" Ichigo asks next. Rukia blinks and then blushes.

"No, I don't have anything in my eyes." Rukia says as she looks away embarrassed. Maybe that is one thing she should cross off the list.

"Good. Then stop doing that, it's freaking me out." Ichigo tells her matter-of-factly before he sinks to a sitting position on his bed. Rukia decides to do something else and she giggles at his response to her.

Ichigo looks up at her with dread. Now he's _sure_ something is wrong with her. What he just heard should never come from her. Any girl but her. Rukia sees the look and wonders if she's gone too far. Ichigo is definitely focused on her, but it isn't the good kind of focused.

"Is something wrong?" She asks innocently as she offers him a sweet smile.

"Yes, something is definitely wrong with you. You've been acting strangely since last night. Want to tell me exactly what in the hell is wrong with you?" Ichigo asks her as he looks at her as though she's some sort of insect he's never seen before.

Rukia lets out an aggravated sigh. _Nothing works on this imbecile! Nothing!_

"Look, just forget it. Obviously you're too immature to handle it. Forget it all!" Rukia says defensively before she hops out of his window. Ichigo stares after her. He doesn't know what to make of it.

When she finally returns, she ignores him long enough to retrieve the list that she had made and she throws it down in front of him with a hard whop on the floor. Ichigo glances down at it and blushes when he starts to read it. He quickly looks back up at Rukia who looks really angry. He saw everything on the list and he has a bit of a sinking feeling in his stomach at the way her eyes are flashing so angrily.

"I guess I'll have to do this the way I do everything else with you. Since you didn't understand earlier, I will draw you a picture!" Rukia snaps as she picks the sketch book back up and flips over the page. She draws two faces kissing and shoves it in Ichigo's face. She doesn't let him speak. She just yells right into his face. "I want to be more than just friends with you! I've been trying to tell you since last night but you were not very responsive!" Rukia thrusts the kiss picture in his face one more time.

Ichigo looks up at her with wide eyes. Never in a million years would he have expected this. He just stares up at her wordlessly in shock as she leans over and grabs him. He doesn't fight her, he just watches as she draws her face closer to him and he closes his eyes when her lips close over his own.

She gives him a very aggressive kiss, and it completely surprises him, but he responds to it happily. Rukia finally pulls away when she's satisfied with his reaction. Even though_ Capturing Strawberry_ didn't work out quite the way she'd hoped it too, the orange haired boy of her dreams looks pretty captured right now. He looks up at her with wonder in his innocent eyes.

"Damn Rukia, you should have just done that to begin with," Ichigo tells her as he touches his lips with his finger. Rukia smiles as she thinks of a way to get him back for all he's put her through for the past day.

"In Soul Society, a kiss like that signifies a marriage." Rukia informs him with a straight face. Ichigo sits up frantically.

"But we're not in Soul Society," Ichigo protests.

"It doesn't matter. You are my husband now. You belong to me." Rukia says, keeping her face serious. She watches in amusement as Ichigo jumps up and looks really scared.

"Now wait a minute Rukia, I didn't know anything about this little custom of yours, shouldn't you inform a guy before you just marry him?" Ichigo asks next.

"You didn't push me away." Rukia points out. Ichigo blushes.

"That's besides the point! That's insane! It's not like I wouldn't kiss you again knowing that, but I should have known before you did that!" Ichigo says in a near wail. Rukia's eyes widen at that bit of information. She blushes before looking back at him.

"I was kidding." She tells him in an embarrassed voice.

"Rukia!" Ichigo tackles her to the ground.

"Sorry! I didn't know you'd confess to wanting to marry me if I played that prank on you!" Rukia says through her happy laughter.

"How are you going to make this up to me?" Ichigo grumbles with complete embarrassment as he has her pinned below him.

"How do you want me to make it up to you?" Rukia asks with a quick and suggestive raise of her eyebrows. Ichigo groans before he grins and looks at her.

"I guess you'll just have to marry me." He tells her with as serious a face as he can muster.

"I would never object to marrying you." Rukia says solemnly. Ichigo realizes in that moment that he wouldn't object to it either.

"Good. I wouldn't either." Ichigo tells her with a kiss. "One day I'll propose with a real ring." He tells her before kissing her again. Rukia sighs happily. Finally everything is right.


	26. Whatever It Takes

_****_

A/N- For the readers of my stories… this chapter is supposed to be mainly funny. I giggled the entire time I wrote it and I wrote Rukia off character to make the story more funny. If you like Inoue a lot or like the characters to be themselves then this is probably not a story for you. I just was so entertained when I wrote it and I love how it turned out dispite the way some people have misunderstood what I was trying to do. Read this story with your funny goggles on please!

_Whatever It Takes_

"I'm in love with Kurosaki-kun, but I'm pretty sure he hasn't noticed. That's why I've decided to finally confess at lunchtime!" Inoue admits to her friend Tatsuki, not realizing Rukia is sitting in on the roof in hearing distance. Rukia's eyes widen at this and her first thought surprises even her.

_No way in hell I'll let that happen, not in a million years!_

Rukia jumps at the force of her own thoughts. She's always considered Inoue Orihime to be a friend, until she just now heard her intentions. It's not that she regards her as an enemy but she's definitely not a friend right now either. Rukia grabs her bag and pulls out a paper and pen. She writes a quick note to hand to Ichigo as she enters class.

_Ichigo,_

_I need you to meet me in private __**immediately**__ after the lunch bell. If you don't come I'll hurt you in a hundred different ways. No a thousand. I'll kill you if you don't come._

_Rukia._

Rukia folds up the note to carry in her hand so that it won't be spotted and she grabs her bag.

_That ought to do it for now. _

She cannot allow Ichigo and Inoue to be together in any way shape or form until she can find a way to tell him how she feels herself. She will do whatever it takes to keep Inoue from confessing before her. She doesn't even want Ichigo to picture being with her. She wonders if Ichigo would behave this way if a guy were hitting on her. She thinks it's messed up that she hopes he would.

Rukia hurries to the classroom and slyly drops her note into Ichigo's lap and hisses in his ear.

"You'd better read that, your life depends on it." Rukia had said it with as much threat in her voice as she could manage at her quiet volume. Ichigo had visibly gulped and nodded his head at that order. Rukia sits in her seat and watches for him to read her note. Inoue walks in the classroom seconds after Rukia sits and casts a quick glance at Ichigo who is currently unfolding Rukia's note with an extreme sense of haste. Inoue doesn't notice the narrowed eyes she's getting from Rukia, since she doesn't glance past him to see her.

Ichigo finally gets her note unfolded and his eyes read her words and he can practically feel the bloodlust exuding from her as he reads her note and he figures he'd better meet Rukia at lunch in private and immediately after the bell rings. He doesn't want to die at her hands.

Rukia spends all morning coming up with as many different ways as she possibly can to keep Inoue and Ichigo from meeting up privately. Even if it means she has to stick to Ichigo's side like glue, she'll do it.

Rukia knows Ichigo is different from other men, but there's a small part of her that wonders if Ichigo would like to picture himself doing intimate things with a big breasted girl like Inoue over a girl like herself, who was still developing body-wise.

She shakes her head at that silly insecure thought, she knows her body fits her, and even though she doesn't have humongous boobs, she does have other beautiful womanly attributes that Ichigo would do well to appreciate. She knows why she's worrying. _It's because he has a penis._ She worries _that one thing _will cloud his good judgment.

Ichigo glances at Rukia several times over the course of the morning and comes to the conclusion that something is _really_ bothering her. She appears to be trying to solve the world's most difficult questions. She is deep in thought, and every once in awhile, she appears to think of something before writing it down on a piece of paper. He wonders if this has anything to do with their lunch meeting.

When the bell rings, Rukia hisses at him.

"Don't speak to anyone, just follow me." Rukia says under her breath. Ichigo nods solemnly. The look in her eyes is scaring him. He wouldn't dare do anything other than obey her when she has this kind of look in her eye. Rukia quickly runs out of the room very fast for a small girl and Ichigo quickly runs after her. He doesn't respond when he hears Inoue's voice.

"Kurosaki-kun! Wait a minute!" Inoue had said, but it was of no use. Once again she had to watch him chase after Kuchiki-san.

Ichigo follows Rukia up to the roof where nobody else is at and she sits down. Ichigo realizes neither of them have a lunch. He doesn't want to go all day without eating, but he'd rather die than tell her that now. She isn't saying anything, but her attitude is such that he feels like she could turn on him violently at any second. He wonders what has her in this state. He sits facing her.

"Rukia, what in the hell is wrong? I can tell something has been bothering you since you walked into class this morning." Ichigo finally says, after she doesn't say anything. "Your note sounded like something was up." He adds that before waiting for her response.

"Yeah." Rukia replies, but she doesn't add anything to that explanation.

"Well, what?" Ichigo asks her. Rukia remembers some of her solutions for keeping Inoue from confessing and she gives Ichigo a direct look in the eyes.

"If you see me using kidou of any kind in front of our classmates, you have to back me up and agree with whatever excuse I give for the occurrence." Rukia says softly. She's pretty sure he'll have tons of questions for her when he sees her using kidou on Inoue, but she figures as long as she doesn't kill Inoue, he'll go along with it. Ichigo gives her a very confused look.

"Of course, but why would you need to be using it in front of our classmates?" Ichigo asks. Rukia looks up at him and puts a finger on his lips.

"Shhhh. Listen to me." Rukia says softly. Ichigo freezes at her gentle touch and then he nods his head yes faithfully. "Don't ask so many questions." Rukia orders before removing her finger. Ichigo blinks several times in astonishment before looking at Rukia like she's nuts. He stares at her trying to discern the problem, but he can read nothing on her poker face.

"Well I don't know if you haven't noticed, but neither of us have a lunch." Ichigo finally points out. Rukia glances at him.

"You absolutely have to eat?" She asks nervously. Ichigo just stares at her and shakes his head yes. Rukia sighs. "Wait here, and I'll get our lunches. Do not speak to anybody while I'm gone, got it?" Rukia asks before using her chappy pill to pop out of her body. She looks at the temporary soul. "He's not allowed to speak to anyone while I'm gone." Rukia orders and Chappy nods her head faithfully before staring at Ichigo like he's her prey.

Rukia disappears using shunpo. She's back in less than thirty seconds and Ichigo is very glad. Chappy had climbed all over him and he was thankful no other students saw him. She had wrapped herself around his neck, and hung on his back, making for a very compromising scene as Rukia returns. She only barely smiles at him before taking her gigai back. Rukia hands him his lunch and it appears she grabbed her own as well. Ichigo glances at her nervously but he doesn't question it.

They sit in silence for almost the rest of their lunch. Rukia glances up at him before the bell rings though to instruct him once again.

"As soon as the bell rings, we need to hurry to your house and we must get there as quickly as possible." Rukia informs him. Ichigo had just nodded his head again. Her eyes had that threatening look in them again, and he didn't know what had her on edge, but he would do whatever she asked until she was okay.

As they head back to class Rukia looks at him and sighs in a very annoyed voice.

"You let your reiatsu leak out _way_ too much." She comments. Ichigo doesn't reply. She's definitely really pissed off right now over something. He doesn't understand why she won't confide in him, but obviously it's something big. He wonders what it is.

All afternoon, Rukia behaves the exact same way she did in the morning, being deep in thought, scowling a lot and writing stuff down. He wants to help her but he's afraid she won't let him help. When the day finally ends, they hurry to his house, running as fast as they can. Rukia is glad that they were able to dodge Inoue. The moment they get back to his house, Rukia starts pacing and worrying. Rukia can feel Inoue's reiatsu drawing closer. _What if Inoue comes over?_ Rukia looks at Ichigo who appears engrossed in his homework. She sighs and she stops pacing to stand behind him.

"Take me somewhere." Rukia says in a demanding voice. Ichigo drops his pencil in surprise when she speaks. He turns in his chair to meet her eyes. He isn't expecting what he sees. Rukia's eyes have a desperate, urgent look in them.

"Where do you want to go?" Ichigo asks her quietly.

"Somewhere you don't normally go. Somewhere nobody we know will see us." Rukia answers swiftly. Ichigo finally nods his head and they stand to leave. Rukia looks really impatient to get out and so they immediately leave.

Ichigo ends up taking her to his elementary school playground. There are woods behind the school and he takes her for a walk through them. He finally stops when he finds a couple of big rocks and he sits on one. Rukia silently sits on the other rock.

Rukia closes her eyes to locate Inoue's reiatsu. She's heading away from them and Rukia sighs in relief. Ichigo watches her and frowns. He can't figure out what could possibly be bothering her.

"You are probably thinking that I'm acting weird today." Rukia says quietly. Ichigo's eyes shoot up at her.

"A little," Ichigo says, being considerate.

"Sorry. Don't be mad, okay?" Rukia asks him in a small voice.

"Okay." Ichigo agrees as he stares at her. He wasn't mad at her, more like he was worried about her. She seems nervous about something, and he's worried that since she isn't telling him what it is, that it has something to do with him.

"Can we come here again tomorrow, and do our homework here?" Rukia asks him suddenly. Ichigo glances at her with a weird look and nods.

"As long as it doesn't rain. I hope you know you can tell me anything that is on your mind. It bothers me to see you worrying on your own about something." Ichigo tells her softly.

"Actually, I've been worrying about my breasts." Rukia announces suddenly. Ichigo turns extremely red, very quickly.

"What?" Ichigo asks as he lets his gaze fall to her chest for a moment before raising his eyes to meet hers again.

"Yep. I've been terribly worried about my breasts. Do you think they're too small?" Rukia asks him with a really worried look on her face. Ichigo is speechless. He's not about to tell her she has the cutest figure in the world and that he fantasizes seeing her breasts without any clothing covering them up. He closes his mouth and stares at her for a moment.

"No." Ichigo finally says. He figures the shortest and most direct answer is probably best considering the way his heart is ramming away in his chest.

"No? No what?" Rukia asks as she stares at him. Ichigo looks at the ground.

"No they aren't too small. I've never seen them personally, but from what I can see they fit you perfectly. There's nothing wrong with your curves." Ichigo finally says, feeling his face is a deep shade of red. Rukia looks relieved.

"I'm glad." Rukia says in response.

"_That's_ what you have been acting so worried over?" Ichigo asks dubiously. Rukia nods.

"That's part of it. Thank you for your answer, I feel a lot better now." Rukia says with a beaming smile. Ichigo's face is still red as it was since he answered her.

"Did someone say something to you to make you wonder about that?" Ichigo asks, wondering why on earth she would ask him a question like that. He still can't get over the embarrassment of it all.

"No. It's just suddenly something I started worrying about." Rukia answers cheerfully.

"You still want to come here tomorrow?" Ichigo asks with confusion. Rukia nods.

"Yes, please." Rukia answers.

"When do you want to go back?" Ichigo asks. He watches as Rukia closes her eyes and appears to think a minute.

"Soon, I guess." Rukia says after a minute. "We'll walk to school together tomorrow, okay?" Rukia says next. Ichigo just nods his head. He can't help giving her a weird look.

"Sure."

_The next day…_

Rukia sighs in relief as she and Ichigo sit in their seats just as the bell rings. She had timed it perfectly to give Ichigo _no_ time to chat before class with anyone. So far, so good. Now she just has to make it through lunch. She has been one hundred percent successful for the past twenty four hours in keeping Inoue and Ichigo from speaking.

The morning passes quickly and when it's time for lunch, Mizuiro beats Rukia to the punch and tells Ichigo to eat with him. Rukia follows next to Ichigo, and luckily Mizuiro doesn't comment on it. Rukia feels like an idiot when Inoue appears behind her in between her and Ichigo and taps him on the shoulder. Rukia hadn't noticed her coming.

Rukia's heart pounds heavily in her chest.

"Kurosaki-kun-" Inoue starts to say but Rukia's fist flies up so quickly and she knocks Inoue out before she can finish her sentence. Rukia quickly drops to the fallen girl's side. Ichigo's eyes pop out of his head at the sight, since he had the perfect spot to see it all perfectly.

"Inoue! I'm so sorry, it was an accident! Are you okay?" Rukia says loudly and as sincerely as she can muster. Inoue is knocked out though and Tatsuki gives Rukia a lethal look that would scare just about any other girl. Mizuiro can hardly believe his eyes at Inoue's condition.

Ichigo's jaw is on the floor. He saw everything, even though he was the only one. He stares at Rukia in shock as Tatsuki gathers Inoue in her arms and walks her to the infirmary. Rukia meets Ichigo's eyes and quickly looks away when she sees what's there.

He knows. He knows it was no accident, and she knows he knows. He seems to be in way too much shock to say anything though, he just stares at her . Rukia knows he won't buy her act and so she turns a bit pink and continues avoiding his gaze.

"Sorry Mizuiro but I have to talk to her." Ichigo says, nodding his head towards Rukia. Mizuiro nods, and Ichigo walks Rukia to a secluded area behind a tree.

"You hit Inoue!" Ichigo accuses her wide eyed. "Why did you do it?" Ichigo asks her in confusion. Rukia doesn't answer. "You just clocked her in the face really hard." Ichigo says slowly, enunciating each word. "You have shocked me beyond my wildest belief. What were you thinking?"

"I wasn't thinking, my hand just reacted without my thinking it through!" Rukia tries to lie.

"Bullshit. I saw the _whole_ thing. You intentionally slugged Inoue. It's not like you to just attack a friend for no reason, and I would really like to know why you would do that." Ichigo tells her with a serious look. Rukia gets so nervous, she does the only thing she can do. She yells.

"Damn it, Ichigo, I've been under a lot of stress! I didn't intentionally knock her out no matter what you might think!" Rukia shouts it loudly in his face.

"Quit lying to me!" Ichigo yells back. They both breathe really hard as they glare at one another. "Damn it Rukia, I don't really care that you hit her as long as I know why!" Ichigo finally spits out. Rukia's eyes widen, before she realizes there is no way in hell she can confess to him like this. If he even let out one tiny little laugh, she might murder him for his insensitivity.

Rukia decides her only option is to walk away from him. She walks away from the other students and she isn't surprised when he starts trailing her.

"Please, just leave it alone. It was an accident." Rukia says in a weary voice. "I feel bad enough," Rukia manages to say without gagging. No way in hell she'll admit she feels a million times better after clobbering Inoue. She's wanted to hit her since she heard her say she was going to confess her love to Ichigo.

_Nobody messes with my man._ Rukia's eyes widen. _Where in the hell did that come from?_

"Fine. I'll leave it alone, but you're not going to convince me it was an accident. I know what I saw." Ichigo informs her. He can't for the life of him figure out why anybody, least of all Rukia, would want to deck someone as nice as Inoue. The girl did nothing to hurt anyone and she was never anything but nice. It was that quality in fact that turned him off about her. She was too nice, so much so, that she was a pushover.

She had in fact saved both of their lives several times, which was why Ichigo was that much more confused. He stiffens when Tatsuki walks over to them quickly and angrily. She doesn't go to Rukia, she goes to Ichigo.

"I didn't see what happened, but you did. From where I stood it looked like Kuchiki hit Inoue on purpose. Is that how you saw it?" Tatsuki asks him. Ichigo feels dread in his stomach. If he tells Tatsuki the truth, Rukia will beat the shit out of her when Tatsuki attacks her. He can't think beyond that.

"It was an accident Tatsuki, don't get all worked up, she feels horrible." Ichigo says, glancing at Rukia and then back at Tatsuki. Tatsuki looks relieved. Rukia doesn't show any emotion on her face whatsoever, but she too is relieved. She doesn't want to have to explain why she just attacked Inoue.

"Oh. I just needed to make sure. Inoue will be just fine. She's just resting right now, they'll send her back to class after she wakes up." Tatsuki tells them before walking away to find the other girls. Ichigo glares at Rukia for forcing him to participate in such a lie.

"Thanks." Rukia says simply after Tatsuki is gone.

"If I told her the truth, she would have attacked you and she would have lost. That's the _only_ reason I lied." Ichigo tells her with a glare. "It's not cool to hit someone who has saved yours and my life. I don't know what you're thinking, but you have to stop." Ichigo tells her firmly.

Ichigo breathes a sigh of relief when Rukia nods her assent. He finally feels like he can relax. He figures everything will go back to normal now.

He figures wrong.

After school, Inoue with a bandage on her face runs up to catch up with them."Kurosaki-kun!" Inoue calls out. Ichigo stops and sends a quick glance to Rukia who seems completely calm before he focuses on Inoue. He sees her bandages and when she finally makes her way over to them, she looks up at him first.

"Can I talk to you alone for a minute?" Inoue asks him. She makes the mistake of looking at Rukia who immediately unleashes a silent binding spell. Inoue sees flower petals and sinks to the ground. Ichigo stares at Inoue on the ground, completely horrified.

He just saw…Rukia's eyes turn from blue to purple and he saw flower petals fall to the ground and Inoue had seen it too, and now she's unconscious on the ground. Ichigo stoops over in concern."Inoue! Inoue! Wake up!" Ichigo says in concern. He looks up at Rukia with accusation in his eyes. "Rukia! I thought we had a talk about this already!" Ichigo says very quietly and urgently. He wonders if there's something wrong with her.

"Leave her." Rukia says as she starts to walk away. Ichigo gawks at her.

"We can't do that!" Ichigo says frantically. "We have to take her to the infirmary at least!" Ichigo tells her.

"If you pick her up I will hurt you!" Rukia says angrily as her eyes flash at him with a lot of emotion.

"You'll hurt-" Ichigo says but he's cut off.

"Leave her right now!" Rukia tells him. "Tatsuki's coming," she adds. Ichigo looks up and sees Tatsuki running towards them.

"What happened now?" Tatsuki yells as she's almost to them. Ichigo clutches his head in frustration as he stares at Rukia as though she's gone insane.

"Inoue suddenly collapsed, nobody touched her." Ichigo says as Tatsuki drops down next to Inoue, breathing hard from her run.

"I'll look after her," Tatsuki says. Rukia nods and motions for Ichigo to come with her.

Ichigo follows Rukia with a huge knot of dread in his stomach. If he doesn't do something, who knows what Rukia will do to Inoue next? She's already punched her and used a binding spell to knock her out and that was after he was sure she understood that she couldn't harm Inoue anymore. What is she thinking?

Ichigo remembers how Rukia was thinking so deeply the past few days and he wonders what she was writing down. He'll sneak a peek tonight if she doesn't confess.

He doesn't even take her to his house, they immediately go to the rocks in the woods and they sit in silence. Ichigo pulls out some homework to work on it, but he can't concentrate after a minute and he sighs.

"Please tell me what in the hell is going on in your head." Ichigo finally says softly, earning him an annoyed glare from Rukia.

She wants to tell him, so badly, but now isn't the best time. He seems pretty annoyed with her extreme actions against Inoue today. When she just shakes her head in a refusal to answer, Ichigo just sighs in defeat.

_Then I'll just have to take drastic measures to find out why you're acting so strangely._

Ichigo forces himself to concentrate on his homework. He hopes he'll get his answers later.

_Later that night…_

Ichigo is in a foul mood since Rukia had refused to give him any answers. She just watched him a lot and she seemed preoccupied in thought. Probably some new plan to make him think she's lost her mind. Ichigo shudders to think what Rukia might do to Inoue next and with that thought in mind, he sneaks into Rukia's closet as she sleeps and takes her bag out of the room.

He walks downstairs to the kitchen with her bag and starts pulling everything out. He locates what he's looking for quickly. It appears as though she has crossed off some items on the list. The ones crossed off are, punch Inoue, use binding spell on Inoue, and get Ichigo away from his house in the evening.

Ichigo stares at all of the things on the list and his face blanches at some of her solutions. He feels a chill run down his spine when he realizes that Rukia has used her least violent actions up and that her next solutions will only get worse. Some of her suggestions make him shudder in horror.

"Use tear gas to make it so she can't breathe, kick her in the stomach to knock the wind out of her, ship her off to America…holy shit." Ichigo mutters as he stares at Rukia's incriminating list. There is no way he can even consider leaving things as they are.

He puts everything back in her bag except for the paper she had written on, which he sticks in his pocket, and he goes upstairs and picks her up in her sleep. He walks Rukia over to the bed and then shakes her awake. He flips on the lamp as she starts to stir and watches her wake up.

When she opens her eyes in sleepy confusion, she looks so happy to see him, at first. Then she notices what he is pulling out of his pocket. He shoves the paper in front of her face.

"You can't keep going like you've been going. You just can't. I want to help you, not yell at you, and I won't be mad at you. This list here, scares me." Ichigo admits in a soft voice as she looks wide eyed in surprise at him and the list, and then back at him again.

"Ichigo…" Rukia trails off. She doesn't know where to begin.

"No matter how I try to rationalize it, I can't understand why you're acting like this towards her. I thought you were good friends!" Ichigo says in desperation . "Tell me why you have to do any of the things on this list." Ichigo demands as he waves it around some more.

"I don't want to tell you." Rukia says in a small voice.

"Tough shit. You're damned well going to tell me, you can't kick her in the stomach, you can't shoot tear gas at her, and you certainly can't have her shipped to America!" Ichigo's voice has gotten really loud. He takes a few deep breaths. "You need to tell me why you think Inoue would need to be shipped off anywhere."

"No!" Rukia responds angrily.

Ichigo shakes her. He shakes her really hard and furiously. He just wants to get through to her.

"You have to stop such dangerous behavior!" Ichigo insists as he shakes her.

"I don't want her around." Rukia finally says.

"Why?" Ichigo asks in confusion.

"I just don't." Rukia replies stubbornly.

"Damn it Rukia, just freaking tell me! I'm so worried about you right now! You are not acting at all like yourself. Don't you know how much that worries me? I used to think you were happy with me, and now you're scaring the hell out of me. I love you too much to just stand by and watch you destroy yourself silently!" Ichigo says, speaking from his heart, not realizing the extent of what he'd revealed until he'd revealed it.

"You love me?" Rukia repeats, feeling like suddenly, everything might turn out okay.

"Yes, you idiot! Now tell me why you're assaulting Inoue! I'll do whatever I can to help you stop since I love you." Ichigo says it a second time since he's already gotten it out once.

The change that comes over Rukia's entire being is shocking to say the least. All of a sudden she's smiling brightly as she takes the list from Ichigo and rips it into shreds.

"I don't need this anymore. I love you too!" Rukia tells him happily.

"What do you mean, you don't need this anymore?" Ichigo asks, trying to understand. Rukia gives him an embarrassed look, but now she can finally explain.

"Yesterday morning, I overheard Inoue telling Tatsuki that she planned to confess her love to you, and no matter what, I couldn't let that happen until I told you I loved you, but you were getting madder and madder at me and it was getting even more difficult to tell you." Rukia says in a small insecure voice.

Ichigo can't help it. He laughs . He laughs really hard.

"You did all of that just to keep her from confessing?" Ichigo asks in appreciation. "Not to mention some of the things you were considering doing…I'm glad I decided to resolve this before things got any uglier." Ichigo says with relief.

He doesn't even want to _consider_ the measures he would have taken if the situation were reversed. Like if he overheard Renji telling someone he was going to confess to Rukia, he would have probably taken extreme action too.

"You still love me, now that you know she loves you, right?" Rukia asks with wide eyes. Ichigo grabs her up in his arms and kisses her. He stares deep into her eyes before answering.

"Yes! Inoue and I would never ever work out. Firstly, I love you. Secondly, she's too much of a pushover. Thirdly, big breasted girls make me uncomfortable." Ichigo admits . "I don't find gigantic boobs to be attractive." Ichigo tells her then. Rukia laughs and kisses him back.

"I'm so glad!" Rukia says, giving him a long loving kiss. Ichigo pulls her into his arms.

"Let me fall asleep holding you." Ichigo says softly in her ear.

"Okay." Rukia says happily.

Rukia wakes up in the morning feeling wonderful. She no longer has to keep Inoue silent and Ichigo and she are an official couple. Ichigo and Rukia start their walk hand in hand on the way to school but when they turn the first corner, they stop in surprise at seeing Inoue, standing there, waiting for them.

"Inoue!" Ichigo says in surprise. Inoue stares at their clasped hands. She looks up at Ichigo and tries to smile, but tears come out instead. She turns and runs off. Neither of them feel inclined to chase her either.

"Well that solves _that_ problem!" Ichigo says as he watches Inoue quickly retreat.

"I couldn't be happier!" Rukia says with a sigh as she squeezes his hand.

_The things I do for him, honestly._


	27. Ishida's Question

**A/N-this story is dedicated to those of you who did not like the last story. Hopefully you'll like this one better. **

**To those of you who LOVED the last story, **_**thanks! **_**I stayed up really late writing it and my fingers just kept moving across the keyboard. It's one of my personal favorites in this series. It was meant for laughs.**

_Ishida's Question_

When Ishida tugs his arm, Ichigo is surprised. Ishida doesn't ever initiate conversation unless there's an urgency in doing so. He tries his best to act like as a Quincy, he can not have a good relationship with a Shinigami. Ichigo looks at Ishida and sees he looks very serious about something.

"What's up?" Ichigo asks him. Ishida pushes his glasses up his nose in a nervous gesture and gives Ichigo an irritated glare.

"Normally I would not pry, but your actions are now affecting my life. When are you finally going to start dating Kuchiki-san?" Ishida asks in an exasperated voice. "Or are you perhaps more interested in Inoue-san?" Ishida asks, refusing to meet Ichigo's eyes. Ichigo on the other hand can hardly get his bottom lip off the ground. Ichigo scoffs.

"And why is this your business?" Ichigo snaps at him. Ishida blushes obscenely and Ichigo's eyes widen.

"You like one of them don't you?" Ichigo asks stupidly. Ishida rolls his eyes.

"Yes I like one of them, the one that isn't a Shinigami." Ishida retorts quietly. "Except that she has this unhealthy and annoying obsession with you." Ishida says with annoyance. Ichigo casts a doubtful look in Ishida's direction.

"What have you been smoking? Seriously?" Ichigo asks as he rolls his eyes. "I've never given Inoue any reason to think I'd be interested in her, you must be hallucinating." Ichigo says before he starts to walk away. Ishida grabs his arm and stops him.

"Maybe you forgot, but I spent a lot of time with Inoue in Soul Society. When we went to save Kuchiki-san and we all landed in Soul Society, I wound up with Inoue. When we landed after the impact of the canon ball exploding, she used her shield to protect me, and she ended up knocking herself unconscious on the landing. When I tried to wake her up, all she could do was mutter your name in a flirtatious voice." Ishida says in a low and aggravated voice.

"Stop fucking with me. If you like her then go ask her out. Don't involve me in your romantic mess." Ichigo says, attempting to walk away only to have Ishida grab him and stop him.

"Listen up you idiot! She won't consider moving on unless she's sure she has no chance with you! Don't you get it?" Ishida asks him now that he's completely rattled.

"Who are you calling an idiot? Only a complete idiot would think Inoue and I had feelings for one another!" Ichigo says hotly.

"I didn't say you had feelings for each other, I said she has feelings for your stupid ass!" Ishida can't even comprehend why he's arguing about something he knows to be true.

"Who put you up to this?" Ichigo turns and gives Ishida a really angry stare. "I will pound your face in so hard if this is some sort of stupid prank." Ichigo says threateningly. Ishida looks like he wants to slap him.

"Kurosaki, you have definitely been hit in the head too many times in your life. Do you think I like having to have this discussion with you? Does it look fun? Do I look like I'm smiling?" Ishida is whining now.

"You really like Inoue?" Ichigo finally asks, and Ishida closes his eyes before he loses all of his sanity.

"I don't know how Kuchiki-san can live with you day in and day out. You're a complete moron!" Ishida says since he's lost all patience.

"What the hell, you whiney little bitch, I was being serious!" Ichigo says, offended that Ishida is blowing up like he has PMS. Ishida takes a few deep breaths. As much as he'd like to end this conversation right now, he's come to care about Inoue a lot and he wants to get through to the knucklehead.

"Sorry. I do like Inoue, a lot. She won't even think about any guy besides you though." Ishida admits with the depression showing in his voice.

"I think you're wrong about that. I've never given her a reason to even think I'd ever be with her." Ichigo says with the doubt still obvious in his voice.

"Who says feelings are based on reason?" Ishida asks next. Ichigo nods his head slowly.

"I suppose you could be right." Ichigo allows.

"So what about you? What girl occupies most of your thoughts?" Ishida asks with true curiosity. Ichigo feels his face turn a bit red.

"None of your damned business." Ichigo tells him, not meeting his eyes.

"You're so immature sometimes." Ishida says as he rolls his eyes.

"I disagree. It's none of your damned business and that's a fact." Ichigo snaps at him and give him a glare to go along with it.

"Well then, I guess it's none of your damned business that Kuchiki-san is about to be asked on a date." Ishida says nonchalantly. He wants to laugh when Ichigo drops his bag and looks horrified.

"What?" Ichigo asks in a bare whisper.

"Calm down, I was just proving my point to you." Ishida says, feeling genuinely relieved. "If you don't like Inoue-san, but you do like Kuchiki-san, shouldn't you do something about it before it's too late?" Ishida asks him. He receives a death stare. Ishida backs up a few steps. "Why do you look like you're ready to kill?" Ishida feels very nervous.

"I am not cut out to handle this soap opera drama. Cut the shit. Why are you standing here and bugging the hell out of me until I start to feel like killing you?" Ichigo asks him in a low and threatening voice. Not that he'd ever kill Ishida, but it wouldn't hurt the Quincy to remember he doesn't want to be on the opposite end of Ichigo's fist, which is where he's likely to land if he keeps joking about Rukia. Ishida is visibly nervous and he takes yet another step back. Kurosaki doesn't look like he has a whole lot of patience left, but neither does Ishida.

"Look. I didn't mean to piss you off. It's driving me crazy that I can't tell Inoue-san how I feel about her. There's no way I can do that while she's got you on the brain. I just wish you'd make up your mind about what you want and then let everybody know so that they can move on with their lives." Ishida says it so sadly that Ichigo's eyes widen in surprise and he loses all of his anger.

"Why does what I want have to play such a big part in other people's lives?" Ichigo asks softly, and Ishida isn't sure if he's asking himself or asking him. He rolls his eyes and responds without thinking anyways.

"Get over yourself. There have been plenty of instances in human history where one person makes a romantic choice and that affects other lives. You're not the only guy to ever be in such a situation." Ishida says, annoyed once more. Ichigo nods and grins at him though.

"You're right. I shouldn't think of it like that." Ichigo says as he considers for a moment.

"So what are you going to do?" Ishida asks next.

"Why do I have to do anything?" Ichigo asks him in confusion. Ishida loses his temper.

"Haven't you been listening to a word I've said?" Ishida asks him aghast.

"Yes, I've heard everything you've said. I still don't know why I'm obligated to do anything. It's not my fault or problem that the girl you like has a supposed crush on me, it's not like I return her feelings! What do you expect me to do? Go up to her and tell her I heard she likes me and to forget about it? She has never said a word to me about her feelings, otherwise I would have already told her no by now!" Ichigo snaps at Ishida and pins him with another glare.

"No, I didn't expect for you to do that, but I did expect you to make things right. If you don't like Inoue-san, then who do you like? Can you get around to telling that person so that I can confess to Inoue-san without fearing she's still waiting to see how you feel about her!" Ishida asks him in a pleading voice.

"I don't know…" Ichigo says it uncertainly. "Leave me alone." Ichigo says trying to walk away once more. Ishida doesn't stop him this time, but he follows him.

"For once in your life, think about the emotions of the people around you and not just their lives. What good is life if you're never happy? Inoue-san may not have confessed her feelings to you, but you know now all the same. You need to do something to stop her obsession with you if you don't like her back." Ishida says, feeling bad for Inoue. He knows how she feels, when the one you love admires someone else.

"Sorry Ishida, but it's my opinion that you should move on. You expect Inoue to do exactly that once she knows my feelings, and you claim you already know hers. Why are you still after her if she isn't interested in you?" Ichigo asks him, and Ishida's eyes widen before he lowers his head and answers humbly.

"I love her. I think she would give me a chance if she knew without a doubt that she couldn't be with you." Ishida admits.

They both stop walking and glare at one another for a minute, and neither one of them notice Rukia approaching from behind. Ishida decides to keep talking since Ichigo hasn't responded to his last statement.

"You're supposed to be her friend aren't you? You should do as a true friend would and let her know you overheard she has feelings for you. You should ask her if it's true and then you should let her know that because she's your friend you have to be honest with her. Tell her you're not interested!" Ishida says, wondering why this all has to be so difficult. Instead they heard a gasp of horror directly behind them.

Ishida and Ichigo both turn quickly and their mouths both drop open at the sight of Rukia. She has an expression on her face that neither of them have ever seen before. Her eyes are open a little wider than usual but her lashes are quivering a tiny bit and so are her eyebrows. They both watch as she runs off in the opposite direction from them.

Ichigo realizes she heard what Ishida was saying and she assumed he was talking about her, and _not_ Inoue.

"Shit! Rukia!" Ichigo runs after her as fast as his legs will carry him, to find her.

Ishida sighs. He decides to go to the sewing shop and buy some new things. He figures he'll just have to keep waiting in order to have his shot with Inoue.

Meanwhile, Ichigo has finally caught sight of Rukia and is catching up to her quickly.

"Rukia! Stop!" Ichigo yells out. Rukia keeps running. "Damn it! Stop running away from me Rukia! You're the only person who's not allowed to run away from me!" Ichigo yells out loudly as he keeps getting closer and closer to her. She doesn't even answer him.

Ichigo figures he doesn't have a choice. He sprints at top speed and when he finally catches up with her, he tackles her to the ground in her skirt and then turns in the air so that he lands on his butt and she is safe in his arms. He's holding her too tightly to let her go. When he's finally able to look at her face, he's shocked to see it looks as though she's been crying.

"Let me go Ichigo." Rukia's voice is a whisper. Ichigo doesn't let go. She turns her head away from him.

"Rukia. Look at me." Ichigo asks softly. She keeps her face averted.

I need you to let me go," Rukia says in an aching whisper. Ichigo realizes. Her misunderstanding is really bad.

"Why should I let you go? You go and make assumptions and then you won't even let me set you straight? I'll make you listen to me. Ishida and I were talking about Inoue. We were not talking about you." Ichigo says, knowing full well that's why she got upset.

"What?" Rukia's voice is so tiny, Ichigo feels horrible.

"Look at me." Ichigo whispers in her ear. Rukia slowly turns her face to meet his regretful eyes, and she sees an expression of tenderness on his face that she has never seen before. "I would never say those kinds of things about you. Not only have you saved my life, you make it worth living." Ichigo says in a very emotional voice. He's very relieved to see happiness in her eyes.

"What kinds of things would you say about me?" Rukia asks softly.

"I try not to talk about you too much. I always figured if I had something to say about you, then I'd say it to you." Ichigo admits sheepishly.

"I'm asking you if that means you're interested in me." Rukia says, pinning him with an intense stare.

"I was interested in you when I first saw you. My feelings have since evolved from mere interest and I have loved you for a long time." Ichigo finally admits it to her face. His own face is pink and he looks embarrassed, but it's obvious he means it.

"Does that mean you'll commit to me?" Rukia asks him next.

"Yes." Ichigo answers her instantly. She smiles.

"They say a girl never forgets her first boyfriend." She says as she grins at him, wiping away all traces of her past tears.

"You'll never find out if that's true firsthand, because if I'm your first, then I'm also your last." Ichigo says possessively. Rukia smiles hugely.

"I was hoping you'd say that." Rukia says, and Ichigo rewards her with a mind shattering sizzling kiss. "Want to go get some ice cream?" She asks him.

"Yeah, but I have to do something else first. Can I see your phone?" Ichigo asks Rukia. She hands him her phone and he immediately text messages Ishida.

_Rukia and Ichigo are an official couple now. You're the first one to hear it. Do with that information what you will. Good luck. _

Ichigo presses send and hands her the phone before walking hand in hand with Rukia to the ice cream shop.


	28. Inheritance

**A/N: This is an idea I've had in my head for months now, and I just had to write it out. I would love it if something like this happened for real in Bleach! **

**It all belongs to Kubo Tite, he can even have this chapter if he wants it!**

_Inheritance_

Ichigo looks at Rukia with relief on his face, even though he's bleeding profusely from his battle with Aizen.

At least she isn't seriously hurt. The tears in her eyes over her worry for him though are hard to ignore. He is staring into her eyes, willing her to stop crying, but his voice isn't working.

Inoue is hurrying to get to his side so that he can be healed, but his focus right now is on the black haired Shinigami who's made it her mission to keep him alive since she met him. She's also the only reason his eyes are open right now. He knows how many times she risked her own life to keep him alive.

He had felt guilty after every time she'd been forced to save him. Now though, the fight is over. He wants to tell her how he feels but since he can't talk, he just looks at her like she is the most precious treasure in all the world.

Inoue finally makes it to his side, and she immediately works to start healing him. She feels like she has is having a flash of déjà vu at the way Kurosaki-kun is staring at Kuchiki-san.

Ichigo can feel that the healing is in progress and when he can finally speak, he glances at Inoue. She looks into his eyes as a few tears slide down her cheek. She can't stand to see Kurosaki this beaten up.

"Thanks, Inoue." Ichigo says gratefully. He pins his stare back on Rukia. "Hey. Quit crying." Ichigo says softly to Rukia. "You're supposed to be used to this." Ichigo says with effort.

"I don't think I can ever get used to it." Rukia says with emotion as she watches a few more of his wounds disappear.

"I can't stand to see you cry. Stop it." Ichigo says with a bit more strength. He can tell Inoue will be finished soon now. Rukia nods her head in agreement as she tries to control her emotions.

"You should be just fine now, Kurosaki-kun." Inoue says with her voice cracking a tiny bit. Ichigo does not notice her own emotional condition, because he's too busy trying to sit up. Rukia leans forward and helps him.

"Give your body a moment. Just because you're healed doesn't mean there wasn't a large amount of stress on your body. Let me help you." Rukia says in a soft chastising voice.

"Rukia." Ichigo waits for her to meet his eyes. He can see how emotional the whole situation has made her. When she finally raises her eyes to his and he whispers to her in a heartfelt voice. "Thanks for everything." Ichigo wants to tell her that he could have never made it without her, but too many people are crowding around. Everyone has begun cheering at Aizen's death. He's been slit down the center of his body from the center of his forehead to his nether areas. Ichigo is very surprised when Rukia runs her hand through his hair in a very familiar gesture.

"You don't have to thank me, idiot." Rukia says as her voice breaks. Ichigo can feel a grin forming on his face.

"You're so stubborn." Ichigo tells her through his grin. Neither one can help staring at each other and Inoue backs away a few steps. Even the simplest of comments between them sound like declarations of love, at least to her ears.

Ichigo can hear a familiar voice in the background and wonders if he's losing his mind. He decides to ignore the voice and keep staring at Rukia. He's distracted from looking at her after a moment because he's positive he can hear his father's voice, although he doesn't know how something like that can even be possible. Rukia seems to hear the same thing because she cocks her head to the side as if listening carefully.

"Ichigo, is that your father I'm hearing?" Rukia asks close to his ear, her voice full of shock. Ichigo nods and they both wait. They don't have to wait long since his father forces his way through the crowd and appears next to them Rukia still is still helping Ichigo support himself when his father scoffs at him. Rukia's mouth gapes open in shock at Isshin's Shingami uniform. It's the uniform of those belonging to squad zero!

"Stop laying around, we have important things to do!" Isshin says without any concern for his son's health.

"What?" Ichigo sputters angrily. Rukia looks up in confusion as well.

"You heard me. The time has come for you to claim your inheritance." Isshin says loudly.

"What inheritance?" Ichigo asks in a clueless voice.

"Haven't you ever wondered why you were so powerful? Why you have unlimited room for growth?" Isshin asks incredulously.

"No." Ichigo answers. "I was always under the impression that I was this way to protect people." Ichigo says as he crosses his arms stubbornly. Ichigo suddenly notices his father is in Shinigami robes and that they're unlike the robes of other Shinigami, including the captains.

"Why are you wearing that?" Ichigo finally asks as he realizes his father is a Shinigami. "Why in the hell weren't you here helping us?" Ichigo asks in a deep angry voice. His father sighs.

"This was your battle. The former Spirit King sent me to the living world to give birth to the next Spirit King. He told me before he sent me that there would be a man who would give me a gigai that would take my spirit power. He told me I would not regain my spirit power for twenty years after I got into the gigai. He also told me I would give birth to the next Spirit King and that my first born child would be a son, destined to rule over the royal dimension." Isshin says this in a matter-of-fact voice and Ichigo's mouth falls open in shock. Rukia is in much the same condition.

"What is he talking about?" Ichigo whispers furiously at her. His father continues.

"He told me that only after you had saved the real world and society from being erased you would be ready to take the throne. He said that by this time you would have a woman you wished to rule with you as Queen. He told me to tell you that being Spirit King without a Queen is far too lonely." Isshin says with a sad face. His gaze swings to Rukia.

"What?" Rukia asks nervously.

"You probably should prepare to leave for the royal dimension with Ichigo." Isshin tells her gently. Isshin then quickly swings his gaze to his son. "Unless there's another woman you'd rather be your partner." Isshin says in a firm voice. Ichigo blushes and Inoue looks hopeful.

"I can't believe this." Ichigo says, leaning back against Rukia for support. She still hasn't recovered. Her mouth is open in shock at the idea of being Ichigo's official lifelong partner.

"You may also have any of your friends join you in the royal dimension as part of your royal guard once they live out their lives in the living world. Today though, it will only be you and the Queen. You'll be married within the hour." Isshin adds.

Ichigo is really ticked off that his father is so close to them, and worse that everyone else has shut up and is listening to him. Many of the Shinigami have fallen to their knees as a sign of respect to their future King. Ichigo cannot believe he'll have such a public gathering for such a private question. Ichigo turns towards Rukia.

"Will you marry me and be at my side forever?" Ichigo asks Rukia in a very quiet voice. Ichigo's face feels as hot as the sun. She turns as red as him in front of the crowd. She can't find her voice and so she nods her head yes.

"I always knew Rukia-chan would be my third honorary daughter!" Isshin says with a smile. "The Spirit King told me that the Shinigami who awoke your power would become the love of your life!" Isshin's voice is loud enough to reach those very far away in the crowd. A resounding cheer hits Rukia and Ichigo like a ton of bricks. Ichigo isn't sure what to make of everything he's heard. Nobody sees Inoue running off, since everyone is focused on either Ichigo, Rukia, or Isshin.

"The former Spirit King is dead?" Ichigo asks in a confused voice. Isshin shrugs.

"He wasn't dead when he sent me to the living world, but he told me that he had lost the will to live, which is why I was being entrusted with the mission of raising the next King. Your sisters are destined to be very strong captains in the Court of Pure Souls, and it's not like you can't ever go to Soul Society, if that is your wish. Your residence will be the royal dimension though. If the former King is still alive, he will step aside for you." His father explains. "It's the reason you have both hollow and Shinigami powers. The Spirit King's power is unlimited. The moment you take the throne, you'll inherit the rest of your power. There won't be a power in existence that you don't have too." Isshin tells Ichigo. It's too much for Ichigo and Rukia. They look at each other before staring back at his father.

"That's why I have hollow powers?" Ichigo asks him in surprise. His father looks at him strangely.

"Yes, why else would you have them without the help of the hougyoku?" Isshin asks him.

"Honestly, I thought it was because I was still part human." Ichigo replies. His father nods.

"I can understand how you might come to such a conclusion since you were never made aware of your inheritance until now." Isshin tells him with an understanding nod. Rukia is starting to feel anxious, because she's certain she heard Ichigo's father say they'd be married in an hour.

"I don't have a wedding dress," Rukia says in a very soft voice. Her words get both Ichigo and his father's attention. Isshin gives her a fatherly smile.

"I figured you might say something like that. I had your friend Ishida make you a dress. He's quite talented, you know. He could make a fortune if he wanted to by designing wedding gowns. There's a dress waiting for you in your dressing room." Isshin looks at Ichigo. "There's a tuxedo waiting for you, and your sisters are in Soul Society as well." Isshin tells him. "They would be upset if they missed their brother's wedding." Isshin tells him. Ichigo gulps nervously.

He would have never imagined he'd be tying the knot at sixteen. Even more perplexing is that he's never once told the girl he's marrying that he loves her. He thinks she should hear it before they get married. Rukia can feel his eyes on her and so she meets his eyes with her own. Ichigo gives her a long loving stare before leaning over and whispering in her ear.

"I love you." Ichigo's voice is so soft, and the words are so tremendous that Rukia feels tears springing back into her eyes. It's been an emotional day, that's for sure. The noise seems to reach a deafening level when Isshin demands the couple go and clean up to get married.

_About an hour later_

Ichigo waits nervously for Rukia to appear with her brother. Byakuya had seemed annoyed that his sister was suddenly getting married, but he wasn't about to go against the Spirit King's orders either. He had been in the recovery room in Fourth Division when he'd received the news that his sister was going to be getting married in under a half hour.

He had received the news directly from Isshin in his Royal Guard uniform. Byakuya had bowed his head in respect to Isshin without knowing who he was, but knowing his garb meant he was more noble than Byakuya. Isshin had introduced himself and Byakuya's eyes had grown wide at the name Kurosaki.

Isshin hadn't done it delicately either. He had simply informed Byakuya of Ichigo's pending status and had also informed him of the former Spirit King's orders. Then he told Byakuya who Ichigo had chosen to rule with him in the royal dimension and Byakuya had bowed his head again, but it was more to hide his anger than to show respect.

Byakuya had located Ichigo and ordered him in a threatening voice to treat Rukia well, before going to wait for Rukia to be ready for her own wedding so that he could give her away. Ichigo had done some thinking while he'd gotten dressed and he'd decided he definitely wanted Sado to join them in the royal dimension once he lived a full life. He wonders what his life in the royal dimension will be like.

Life with Rukia. Ichigo blushes just thinking about it. He's never kissed her before and yet he's fairly sure he'll be doing so in front of a large crowd for the first time by the end of the ceremony. That's enough to make him sweat with nervousness. Sado and Inoue walk down the aisle to stand with them for the ceremony.

Inoue hadn't wanted to be this close to the action when Ichigo tied the knot with Rukia instead of her, but she had changed her mind when she had a fantasy of Ichigo seeing her walking down the aisle and changing his mind. Inoue is very disappointed when that doesn't happen, in fact he's hardly looked at her at all since he seems deep in thought.

Ichigo's thoughts are all pushed out of his head when Byakuya appears with Rukia and all of the guests in attendance stand for the march of the bride. Ichigo can barely breathe as he watches her walk towards him. He can only stare at her. He's never seen Rukia looking so beautiful and resplendent. Rukia's eyes are focused on him and she's blushing faintly. Ishida really was talented at creating wedding gowns, as Isshin had said.

When she finally reaches his side and Byakuya kisses her cheek, Rukia turns to face him, and he's stunned by the extent of what he feels for her as he stares into the bluest eyes he's ever had the pleasure of looking at. Seeing her in this gown, walking to him, preparing to pledge her love to him, and then being with him for all eternity, makes him more happy than he could have ever thought possible.

His sisters smile from their seats which are the best in the house, and Isshin is dabbing his eyes in emotion.

Ichigo's heart pounds throughout the whole ceremony as Rukia stands at his side, and he's unable to pull his mind away from her. He had no idea she would look so magnificent in a wedding dress. He had always secretly thought that nothing could be more gorgeous than Rukia in her Shinigami robes. He had been wrong. She's infinitely more beautiful dressed all in white with her eyes sparkling and dancing as she looks into his own joyous eyes. She thinks he looks dashing in his black tuxedo, and she can hardly believe she's actually about to marry him. She keeps asking herself if it's a dream.

Isshin is openly bawling. Karin keeps elbowing him to shut him up. Yuzu is dabbing her own eyes, but she isn't being noisy which keeps Karin off of her back.

Rukia and Ichigo do traditional vows since they didn't have time to come up with their own. When they are proclaimed husband and wife by the Captain Commander, everyone waits for the words. "You may now kiss the bride."

Ichigo's heart rams wildly in his chest as he looks at the beautiful woman next to him. He places his hands on her tiny waist as he leans down and gently brushes his lips against hers. He lets his lips linger there a moment longer than necessary before pulling away to see her beautiful blushing face.

"Congratulations!" Isshin yells as tears stream down his face. He jumps up and runs over to hug Rukia. "Take good care of that brainless moron, I'm counting on you." Isshin tells her. Rukia smiles and hugs him back.

"I will." She promises him. Isshin then turns to Ichigo.

"I will be joining you in the royal dimension when I'm done in the living world. Tell your mother that for me." Isshin's wiping away his tears as he says this and Ichigo's mouth gapes open.

"Mom is there?" Ichigo asks with wide eyes.

"She should be, after all, I killed the hollow that killed her." Isshin tells Ichigo.

"You did?" Ichigo squeaks. He can hardly believe he'll be traveling to his new home with Rukia and he'll get to see his mom after all these years.

"The time has come." The Captain Commander's voice rings throughout the court. "Please follow me." He says this only to Rukia and Ichigo.

"We don't get to have a wedding celebration before we leave?" Rukia asks forlornly. "I also have things I need to get from home still!" The Captain Commander shakes his head.

"You will be able to come back anytime, but the time has come for the new Spirit King to take his place." The Captain Commander tells her, and Rukia knows she won't mind not having to follow so many orders in the near future.

"Don't worry, we'll be celebrating all night long!" Isshin yells with a grin. "You two should be celebrating too, alone. Don't waste anytime on providing me a grandchild!" Isshin tells them. They both anxiously turn their backs to follow the Captain Commander and to hide their fierce blushing.

He pulls a larger than normal key from his robe and leads them to Soukyoku hill. He calls out a spell and a keyhole appears in the air at the edge of the cliff on the side of the hill furthest away from the stairs. Everyone in Soul Society is able to see as the dimension opens and a blinding light infiltrates Soul Society. Not one person is able to look away as the figures of Rukia and Ichigo disappear into the lighted path of the royal dimension.

Ichigo and Rukia can't see anything except light, at first. Then they see a small army consisting of the rest of the Royal Guard and at the head of it, is Masaki, smiling proudly at her son entering his true home with his wife, ready to take them to their thrones.

Between the woman he just got married to and the woman who raised him, Ichigo cannot for the life of him stop smiling as he enters the new dimension, his own kingdom with Rukia to live, love, and be happy.


	29. Coma

**A/N-I wanted to do a story on the five stages of coping. They are: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, & Acceptance. **

**Enjoy!**

_Coma_

_Rukia's week_

Everyone looks on at Ichigo's unconscious form. No matter who tried, he couldn't be woken up, despite the healing of his injuries, he lay in a coma.

He's been like this for a full five days. Never once has he been alone. Rukia is always with him, and when she needs to take care of her bodily functions, she makes Renji sit with him.

The first day, Rukia had spent a lot of time telling herself that the moment she started to get upset, Ichigo was sure to wake up. She figured the moment she shed a tear, he'd open his eyes and roll them at her for being so damned emotional. He'd say something like 'You think I'd die so easy?' or 'This is me we're talking about.' Rukia had been so certain that nothing was really wrong with him, yet she'd been unable to leave his side.

She kept telling herself that once he finally opened his eyes, she'd be able to rest. She hadn't slept one wink, as she had been anticipating the moment he would open his eyes and look at her. Her nerves grew more and more thin as the day wore on.

The second day, Rukia had yelled at him, a lot. She had told him that it was completely pathetic that he was still sleeping now that he had been healed. She had ordered him to open his eyes and she had let her voice raise to unreasonable levels. She wondered if he would respond to her yelling better than he had responded to her denial. She just kept yelling, trying with every fiber of her being to get him to open his damned eyes.

His fingers had twitched a lot in reaction to her angry words. She hated the IV sticking out of his arm. It reminded her that things were still up in the air. She had even threatened to stop watching over him if he didn't snap out of it real soon. It was a threat she would never be able to carry out. She had gotten so angry that she'd gone a second day in a row without sleeping.

She had spent the day either sitting there angry with her arms crossed, or stood there yelling at him. She wanted him to open his eyes and she thought she could yell him out of his coma.

On the third day, Rukia was getting really scared. With Ichigo still in his coma, she leans over him and stares at him with a tear spattered face. She promises him she'll do anything for him, or give him anything he wanted, if he would just open his eyes. She attempts many bargains with the orange haired boy who she keeps so close in her heart, but he still hasn't responded in any way, shape, or form to her.

Rukia ends up passing out from lack of sleep, resting the side of her face on his stomach, facing towards his head. Nobody dares to move her out of the room, or even off of Ichigo as she sleeps, although a few people had to hold Byakuya back from carrying her to the mansion. Between Unohana, Ukitake, and Renji, they'd been able to dissuade him from that course of action by telling him Rukia would be heartbroken if she woke up and found herself anywhere other than Ichigo's side.

When Rukia woke up on the fourth day her face was resting now on Ichigo's chest, since Unohana had adjusted her to help with Ichigo's comfort. When she woke up and saw that he was still comatose, she was sad beyond belief. All she wanted was for him to be making the whole world vibrant again. He's supposed to be just fine, without any complications, yet he hasn't opened his eyes once since he got so badly injured. Inoue's powers are supposed to bring someone back to the state they were in before they had gotten destroyed, and even she had been unable to wake Ichigo.

Unohana has also been completely unsuccessful thus far, and Rukia could only sit there with watery eyes, as she tried her hardest to keep her tears from falling. Nobody dared to say anything to her, once again, since nobody wanted to be the one who made her tears actually fall down her face.

After many hours of staying there depressed, she started to feel the calm of acceptance, even though she still didn't want to leave his side. Rukia falls asleep once again, but this time, she carefully climbs into the small recovery bed with him and buries her face into his neck as she holds him tight.

When she wakes up, she finds that Ichigo has somehow managed to wrap his arms around her while in his coma. She stays very close to him like this, knowing that if he had woken up a few days ago, she couldn't have possibly spent so long holding him close in her arms now. She wonders what will happen now that he's been in a coma for days on end. The longer he stays in a coma, the less likely it is that he'll wake up.

She finally pulls her face away from his neck and she sits up a bit, causing his arm to fall off of her back. Rukia stares at his face as she tries to think of something to tell him. Finally she gives him a weak smile.

"I guess even for someone as strong and magnificent as you, things can go wrong once in awhile. I promise you no matter how long it takes you to wake up, I'll still be here waiting for you. Only my own death could pull me from your side. I love you, Ichigo. I'm sorry I didn't tell you when you had the ability to respond. I never imagined something like this would happen. No matter what, I'll be here for you. I swear it." Rukia can hear her voice cracking as she reassures him she'll wait for him for as long as it takes, no matter how long he takes.

"If you don't take better care of yourself, your condition won't be much better," Renji tells her from the doorway.

"I will stay by Ichigo." Rukia says in a hard voice that allows no room for disagreement.

"Just go shower. I promise not to leave the room while you're gone. You need to clean yourself up, you don't want him waking up to find you haven't taken care of yourself do you?" Renji asks her. Rukia looks up at him.

"I'll bathe a little later. Right now, I just want to stay with him, and talk to him. I just want to be with him." Rukia says softly.

"Some things never change." Renji replies softly. Rukia takes Ichigo's hand and stares at his face.

"I may not be able to change the fact that he's in a coma, but I can damned sure stay by his side until he comes out of it." Rukia says with more force. "It kills me to see him laying there without waking up no matter how much I yell, plead, beg, or threaten. The only comfort I have is knowing I can talk to him and touch him, and maybe he hears me." Rukia tells Renji, who gives her a sympathetic look before looking back at Ichigo.

_Ichigo's week _

Ichigo sliced Aizen and then everything faded into black. He could barely hear anything at first too. He sensed that many people were around him, trying to help him and he's stuck somewhere between annihilation and barely living.

Aizen's last bankai trick was something Ichigo was the only one to ever experience. His bankai involved shutting down his opponent's will to live in their brain. It's something that will make normal people suicidal without even realizing it, they immediately make a mistake and die in the midst of battle.

If Rukia hadn't stopped Aizen's blade the moment it had pierced Ichigo's head, he'd surely be completely dead. It was because she had delayed his sword that Ichigo had managed to Getsuga Tenshou Aizen from the middle of the top of his head straight down to the ground.

Ichigo had realized it just as everything had turned black, that the only reason he had won had been because of Rukia. He had seen stark fear in her eyes as everything had turned black. He could feel her reiatsu as it mingled with his own and he had thought to himself that if he had to die, at least he got to see her face last.

It was definitely bittersweet for him to know she was with him in the end but they had never gotten around to sharing their feelings for one another. They'd both always just run away from doing that. He didn't need to be told that she loved him, it was evident in every one of her actions.

Her beautiful blue eyes, streaked with fear for him were full of so much love he'd have to be a complete idiot to miss it. Ichigo is not a complete idiot no matter how many times she may call him such a name. How do you tell a woman who's nearly ten times as old as you that you're in love with her though?

This was always what had confounded him the most. He didn't know how to say it. It all seems so silly as everything is black and Ichigo wonders when he'll die. He knows he'd rather it be him who suffers these consequences than her.

Aizen hadn't even expected that Rukia would or could stay his blade in bankai mode, Ichigo had seen the sheer surprise that had crossed his face as Ichigo killed him, due to Rukia's actions. Ichigo had been surprised too. Aizen was extremely powerful, and it took everything Ichigo had in his body to stop Aizen's blade in bankai.

Ichigo doesn't know how Rukia was even able to pull off such a feat. It was impressive to say the least. He doesn't have to ask himself why he loves her, she's everything good and everything exciting that he could ever want in a woman. He's glad he spent the last of his life fighting evil with her. It's not a bad way to die in Ichigo's opinion. A hell of a lot of people die doing nothing with their lives.

He wonders how she found the strength to keep Aizen's blade from entering anymore than a quarter of a centimeter into Ichigo's head. She was always surprising him with her level of strength. He knows after all the time he's spent with her that it was due to him that she had not been in usual form the night she'd ended up giving him her powers.

He knew all about Kaien thanks to Ganju and Kuukaku. He also knew that the man had meant an awful lot to Rukia. Ichigo had felt so relieved upon hearing that Kaien had been married and that Rukia had never been in a relationship with him. Especially when he had been shown a picture of Kaien. Ichigo had realized in an instant why Rukia had not been her usual self that night she'd first saved him.

Ichigo had unnerved her beyond her wildest belief, by looking the way he does, and exuding the reiatsu that he does. Until he'd gotten to fight Renji and Byakuya, he'd spent a hell of a lot of time wondering why she would do something as selfless and giving as give him her powers. When Byakuya had mentioned that Ichigo looked a lot like someone, Ichigo had been even more interested. So Rukia did have a special reason that she'd saved him. He's always been grateful, and he's always felt a pull towards her that he never knew how to explain. Ichigo knows she's the only one who makes him feel whole.

All of a sudden, Ichigo wonders what in the hell is going on and why he isn't dead yet. He strains his ears and he can hear muffled voices. He can't make out any of the voices, or what they're saying but he can feel Rukia's reiatsu. It's strange that he's felt it ever since she stopped Aizen's blade.

Ichigo finds it very comforting to feel her so close, it's probably why his mind keeps thinking about her. Between her brave stand with Ichigo against Aizen and her loyalty to stay at his side, even when he's in darkness, he can't help but feel the love grow even stronger. Pretty soon he'll be unable to go on without holding her tight in his arms and thanking her for being everything to him.

Suddenly Ichigo can feel his body, a little bit. He's relieved at this, since maybe it means he won't die after all. He can still barely hear anything, but he thinks maybe he might have drifted off into oblivion for awhile because suddenly Rukia's angry with him. She's loud enough that he can hear her perfectly. He's surprised by her words, and by her anger.

He could hear her telling him that he'd been healed and that he needed to get up. She was practically screaming that into his ears. He hates that he's made her this angry. She's threatening to leave him, but Ichigo knows she's all talk. The only reason she's angry is because he's stuck in this blackness that he can't seem to escape. Ichigo desperately tries to break free of the darkness, but Rukia keeps yelling at him for a really long time.

When she finally quiets down, and doesn't leave his side, he feels like he drifts off into oblivion once again. He feels tired from his struggle of trying to yell back at the girl who'd said so many things to make him want to jump up and scream. _'Enough Already!'_ Ichigo's solitude in blackness is only tolerable since he can constantly feel her reiatsu.

When he hears her voice again, it tears at him so bad he wonders if he's crying. She's offering him anything in the world to see him open his eyes. Ichigo tries so hard to open them, but it's of no use. She offers to do anything or give him anything he wants if he just wakes up. He tries once again to fight the darkness, to get closer to her, but the best he can do is to just listen to her heartbroken voice.

He knows she must have no idea that this is just as hard for him as it is for her. He can't stand to hear her sound so sad and desperate just to see his eyes and hear his voice. He wants to see her too, but he can't break free of the darkness that has its grasp on him. Some of the deals she's attempting to make with him sound way too good to pass up too. She's promising to give him anything in her power if he comes back to her.

When she finally quiets down, Ichigo can feel that she's moved even closer. He wonders if she's fallen asleep on him. When Byakuya's reiatsu draws closer and grows immensely stronger, Ichigo is quite sure that's the case, Ichigo feels relieved when Byakuya's reiatsu moves further away and Rukia is left with him.

Ichigo finally gathers that he is in a coma. He doesn't know how to wake from it though. When he next hears Rukia's voice, it sounds so sad and down that Ichigo can't help but wonder how long he's been in this state. He's able to hear much easier now too. Even more incredible that he's actually conscious in some form during it.

She sounds really depressed. He wonders if she's crying. She sounds like she is, and Ichigo just cannot stand it. It's a sound that absolutely kills him. He wants her to be her usual self. He kind of wishes she'd go back to yelling at him. It's more familiar than the defeated Rukia which is who he senses staying by his side still. Ichigo has no idea how long she stays like that, but he is all of a sudden very aware of his body.

He can feel Rukia's reiatsu as she cuddles into his side and holds him close and tucks her face in his neck. Ichigo wonders if he's blushing, since he can feel her chest pressing against his body and one of her legs is thrown over his own. He knows without seeing that Rukia is sleeping with him. Ichigo makes a very strong effort to show her he's there mentally by finally moving his arms around her.

Ichigo is very exhausted once he manages that though, and he wonders again why he isn't dead. He really wants to open his eyes, but he can't even feel or sense them. He can sense his arms and legs, and he can sense being touched and he can hear. Other than that he can sense reiatsu but that's about it. When she wakes up, she sits up and he feels his arms fall off of her as she sits up.

"I guess even for someone as strong and magnificent as you, things can go wrong once in awhile. I promise you no matter how long it takes you to wake up, I'll still be here waiting for you. Only my own death could pull me from your side. I love you, Ichigo. I'm sorry I didn't tell you when you had the ability to respond. I never imagined something like this would happen. No matter what, I'll be here for you. I swear it." He hears Rukia say.

He is so pained to hear her words. All he wants to do is open his eyes and thank her, tell her he's glad she'll wait for him, and of course tell her that he loves her too. He thinks she deserves to hear it. Once again he starts fighting the darkness when he clearly hears Renji telling her to take care of herself and Ichigo feels bad because he knows the moment Renji says those things that Rukia has not been taking care of herself, she's only been watching out for him.

Ichigo keeps trying to wake up from his coma, trying to open his eyes, trying to find Rukia when he hears her say she just wants to be with him, that it makes her feel good to touch him and talk to him, and think maybe he hears her. With every last bit of strength he possesses, he finally manages to open his eyes, and Rukia is the first to see it.

"Ichigo!" Rukia's face breaks into a huge smile of relief at seeing his eyes. "Thank goodness!" Rukia says before staring at him closely. "How do you feel?" Rukia asks him quietly.

Ichigo tries to talk but his voice sounds like a frog is stuck in it, and Rukia quickly stands and grabs him some water. Ichigo drinks it very quickly and then looks back at her.

"Thanks for staying with me the whole time." Ichigo finally is able to whisper. "I could hear you, and feel you. It was the only thing that kept me working at waking up. You're the only reason I'm not dead right now." Ichigo holds out his hand and Rukia takes it.

"You're welcome," She whispers wholeheartedly.

"I love you too." Ichigo's voice is so soft, Rukia isn't sure she heard him right. When she looks down into his eyes, she can see his love for her shining right there in front of her face. "I heard it when you said that." Ichigo explains. Rukia blushes, and Ichigo's cheeks are a bit pink too.

"I'm so happy you're finally awake, I was so worried," Rukia says before trailing off. She doesn't want to get too emotional. She's glad that he's awake, and he told her he loves her back. She thinks all of this waiting was definitely worth it for him to wake up and say that to her.

"Come here." Ichigo's voice is quiet and demanding. Rukia quickly glances at him and she can see how his eyes have changed the tiniest bit. He keeps glancing at her eyes and then her lips. Rukia knows exactly what he wants, and so she leans over and lets him kiss her. After a few seconds, she responds with all of emotion she's kept under the surface for so long, and in particular the last week.

"Wow." Rukia whispers as she finally pulls away. Ichigo holds her gaze.

"Thank you for everything. The fact that Aizen is dead is as much your doing as it is mine." Ichigo tells her. "That moment made me realize a lot. Whether you come live with me in the living world, or I come to live in Soul Society, I want to fight with you by my side from now on. You make me strong." Ichigo tells her softly, knowing she's not expecting it. Rukia's eyes widen in surprise as he expected.

"What about your life?" Rukia asks him a bit frantically.

"If you aren't with me, then what kind of life is that?" Ichigo asks her seriously. Rukia lets herself smile a little bit.

"You tell me." Rukia whispers.

"Didn't you agree to give me anything if I woke up, or do anything for me?" Ichigo asks her pointedly. Rukia blushes.

"You heard that?" She asks. Ichigo grins at her.

"You're going to keep your word aren't you? All I'm asking is that you always stay with me." Ichigo says softly.

"What you're asking for is what I want more than anything in the world." Rukia admits with very red cheeks.

"Thanks again, Rukia. Without you, the whole world would be fucked." Ichigo says before drifting off into an exhausted sleep. Unohana rushes in a second later to see Rukia's red face and genuine smile.

"He woke up." Rukia says softly.

"Good. I was getting worried. I'll need to wake him again to examine him, why don't you go and bathe, and when you get back, you can stay with him until he wakes up again." Unohana says. Rukia smiles and nods.

She'd _always_ come back for Ichigo.


	30. Urahara's Mirrors

_Urahara's Mirrors_

"So that's what it was like when you went to Hueco Mundo." Urahara says with a slow nod of his head. He looks at the pair who have changed so much in such a short amount of time and he hides his smile at how they sit so close together. This, at least, is still the same. For all that they've endured, it appears their bond has grown much stronger. Urahara offers them a smile.

"I don't know why I listened to her when she said to split up," Ichigo grumbles in an annoyed voice.

"Shut your trap!" Rukia snaps. She hasn't told him about her fight with the ninth espada yet. She's glad she faced that particular hollow alone.

"At least you two are still alive to fight." He says, thinking of how much they've actually grown and survived since she had given Ichigo her Shinigami powers. "I heard you're assigned here now." Urahara adds with a grin to Rukia. He notices that neither one will meet the other's eyes.

"Yes." Rukia says, not meeting Urahara's eyes. She had been the one who'd been the most shocked when Ichigo had gone to the Captain Commander and had requested that Rukia be allowed to stay with him as his partner in the living world. When the old man had agreed to it, Ichigo had asked to be the one to tell her.

He had asked her to take a walk with him in Soul Society and he had asked her if she would let him lose the will to be a Shinigami again. She had glanced at him in surprise and Ichigo had grabbed her by her arms and had looked deep into her eyes. He told her he'd requested for her to be sent back with him to the living world and that his request had been accepted. Rukia had gasped in outrage at first. He had shut down her anger with one sentence.

_I'll let you yell at me as much as you want to later on, but right now I want you to agree to come back with me._

She had gasped as she had remembered the last time he'd said similar words to her. He hadn't stopped there. He had informed her that his friends were great for back-up but she was the only one who could truly be his partner. She had felt very uncomfortable that all control was out of her hands, but the way Ichigo was talking to her, he was trying to give it all back, the control he'd taken by making his request. She had sighed and given him a nod and she had not met his eyes.

Now is no different. They've only been back for two days, but they've hardly spoken about anything other than killing hollows. Rukia hadn't found a good excuse to yell at him yet either. She feels frustration, but she's not sure why. She glances at Ichigo who appears to be equally frustrated.

"When Yoruichi comes home, we should all go out. Like on a double date." Urahara said casually. Ichigo started coughing and Rukia turned bright red.

"What?" Rukia's voice had raised to an unnatural level.

"It's not like it's a secret anymore." Urahara says with a smile.

Rukia and Ichigo trade confused glances with one another before looking at Urahara.

"What are you talking about?" They ask in unison. They're so focused they forget to be embarrassed. Urahara glances from Rukia to Ichigo and back at Rukia again as though they've just completely stumped him. He finally meets Ichigo's eyes and sighs with exasperation.

"You're official partners, right? Just like me and Yoruichi." Urahara says with a firm nod and a smile.

"Urahara-san, I don't think Rukia and I experience as many aspects of partnership that you and Yoruichi-san share." Ichigo says in a halting voice.

"Well whose fault is that?" Rukia snaps at Ichigo suddenly. Ichigo's mouth gapes open.

"What?" Ichigo asks with an almost horrified look on his face.

"Nothing." Rukia says with a sigh. Urahara looks back and forth between them.

"Sometimes you're both far too stubborn for your own good. I think I might have just the thing to help the two of you." Urahara says, before getting up and going to retrieve something.

"Why did you say that a minute ago?" Ichigo asks with a twinge of nervousness.

"I wonder what Urahara is getting," Rukia says, trying to dodge the question. Ichigo rolls his eyes. What did she mean when she said that?

"Here we are!" Urahara smiles grandly at them and hands them each a small mirror. He then hands Rukia a much larger mirror which he puts in a protective cloth. "You must each spend the day with your own mirror and then tomorrow night before you go to bed, look in the big mirror together." Urahara says with a very friendly smile.

Rukia smells a scheme. Ichigo looks up at Urahara-san doubtfully, but the man has never led him wrong before and so Ichigo nods solemnly.

"I understand, Urahara-san." Ichigo says, taking it seriously. He looks at Rukia and gives her an encouraging nod. "I know he deceived you before, but I think we can believe what he says now." Ichigo says, as Urahara sputters indignantly. Rukia grins at this and so she nods at Ichigo.

"Sure." She says as she looks at the small mirror that Urahara had given her. Ichigo looks back at Urahara and doesn't see the look of utter amazement come over Rukia's face as she looks at the mirror. Urahara notices her look though and he quickly moves his gaze to Ichigo so that he doesn't look at Rukia yet.

Rukia's hands shake as she peers at the mirror. Her own reflection is not there. What she sees there though is enough to bring tears to her eyes. She is holding a small baby boy as Ichigo leans over her running his fingers through the boy's bright orange hair. They both have a smile of utter happiness on their face as Ichigo leans down and kisses her. Rukia sees the boy's eyes open and she nearly drops the mirror when she sees eyes identical to hers on the boy's face. Rukia is glad she's sitting down, otherwise she'd fall to her ass right now. She can't stop looking at the mirror. She can't hear the words being spoken between Ichigo and Urahara right now either.

She feels a tear glide down her face when the mirror suddenly focuses on Ichigo, who is holding a second small baby in his arms and it's a little girl with black hair and the same blue eyes as the baby in Rukia's arms. _Babies? Ichigo and I having babies together? Twins? My heart feels like it's going to pop out of my chest right now._

Rukia doesn't know how she manages it, but she's finally able to pull her eyes away from the mirror and she sets it down on the table and places her hands on top of it. She wipes the tears that have fallen onto her cheeks away and she concentrates on hiding all of her emotions. She's startled when Ichigo suddenly touches her arm.

"Rukia?" Ichigo looks worried. "You didn't hear me when I called your name before." Ichigo says, studying her face. He can't pin point it, but something is different. "You ready to go?" Ichigo asks her. Rukia nods as she picks up her mirror. She's not sure she can look at it again, and she's definitely not sure she can look at the big mirror with Ichigo tomorrow night.

The walk back to Ichigo's house is quiet, and Ichigo wonders why Rukia's been acting strange and distant lately. He still wonders what she meant when she asked whose fault it was that they weren't partners like Yoruichi and Urahara. Ichigo blushes as he considers what she was implying. She was implying that it was _his_ fault that they weren't hot and heavy between the sheets.

He sighs and then he absentmindedly glances at the small mirror in his hand. Rukia notices him looking in it and she quickly turns her face away from him, because if he sees anything like what she saw, she's not sure she can be watching what emotions come across his face. Ichigo had been distracted by Rukia turning her head, and so he hadn't looked long enough for his own reflection to disappear. He is curious to know why her face is crimson though.

"Rukia, are you okay?" Ichigo asks, wondering if she is ill. She quickly jerks her head to stare at him in surprise.

"I'm fine." Rukia says, wondering if he had seen anything at all in the mirror. His face doesn't look like he just saw something shocking and so she suspects he did not. It's probably better that he's sitting when he first looks at it anyways, especially if he sees what she saw in hers.

When they get back to his house, Rukia immediately runs into the closet. She lays down and thinks long and hard about the vision the mirror had shown to her. She doesn't even think about the fact that Ichigo has just laid down in his own bed, not too far from where she lays in the closet, and in his hands is the mirror Urahara had given him. He had set the bigger mirror on the desk before laying on the bed.

Ichigo's eyes show his confusion when he sees his reflection fade. His eyes about pop out of his head as his reflection is no longer there. Instead in front of his eyes are he and Rukia making wild and passionate love. Ichigo is on his back and Rukia is on top of him bouncing up and down energetically as Ichigo's hands are settled on her thighs as he helps her bounce faster and harder on top of him.

Ichigo's face turns blazing red as he watches his face show pure ecstasy and Rukia's eyes are closed and her mouth is slightly open and she's completely naked. Ichigo stares long and hard at every inch of her body that the mirror exposes and he feels a bit guilty. He can't look away as in the mirror he appears to get really into it and he flips Rukia over onto her back to make love to her some more.

Ichigo watches as her breasts bounce all around as he moves quickly and strongly in and out of her. He watches as he leans down and kisses her on the lips for a moment before moving with more need and want than before. Ichigo can clearly see his lips mouthing the words _I love you_.

Ichigo takes a deep breath and sets the mirror down. What in the hell was with that image, and why did he have a physical reaction to seeing such a thing? Ichigo glares accusingly at his male anatomy.

_Traitor._

Rukia is his partner, the most important person in the world to him, and he shouldn't be fantasizing about defiling her in such a way. Nor should he be shown very real looking images of him doing such a thing. If Rukia knew, she'd probably kick him until he was unconscious.

Suddenly Ichigo remembers that she was given a mirror too, and he blushes at the thought of her seeing the images that he just saw. Ichigo glances back at the bulge in his pants and wonders whether or not she would have a physical reaction to those images like he did. He can't get the look that had been on his face out of his mind either. In that vision, Ichigo had looked purely and blissfully happy.

Ichigo can't remember feeling any kind of happiness like what he was expressing in the vision and he realizes that Rukia is tied in with his happiness. He always knew that deep down, perhaps that's why he'd requested for her to be assigned with him.

He wants her to be happy, but she's seemed down lately. Ichigo hasn't wanted to push her too much since he'd asked for her to be moved there before talking to her about it first. He knows she wonders why he did it that way. It was to make it so she couldn't refuse. Of course she would never figure that out without him telling her and he sure as hell wasn't going to do that.

Ichigo glances at the closet and wonders if she's looked at her mirror yet.

Inside the closet, Rukia takes a deep breath as she flips on the lamp. She slowly flips over the mirror and stares at it in anticipation. She watches in fascination as an image appears. Ichigo and she are outside in coats and mittens and they're standing in front of a big green tree decorated with shiny balls and other shiny strings. Ichigo is leaning down and giving her a passionate kiss, but there are no kids around.

Rukia watches in fascinated confusion as Ichigo pulls away from her and opens what appears to be a tiny box. Rukia feels all the blood drain from her face when Ichigo drops to one knee and asks her a question that appears to make her happy with joy. Ichigo pulls the ring from his box and puts it on her finger. Rukia sits on the knee that isn't on the ground and kisses him in gleeful excitement.

Ichigo kisses her back and easily lifts her into the air as he stands back up on his feet. He sets her on her feet before grabbing her hand. She watches as they walk hand in hand together in the snow, and Rukia feels like her insides are pulsating from the shock of what she just saw. That was definitely her and Ichigo acting like partners, in every sense of the word. Like what she'd always wanted. She sets the mirror back down and wonders if she should confront him.

She decides to go to bed and wait to see what the big mirror has in store for them.

Ichigo gets a bit annoyed that she never comes back out of the closet, even though he had seen the glow of her lamp between the slits of the door. He had also seen when she had flipped the switch off. He wonders if she saw anything in her mirror.

Ichigo decides to look at his mirror again. He waits for his reflection to fade. He waits for whatever the mirror is going to show him next. What he sees confuses him. He can see a tropical background, and all of a sudden he sees Rukia and him, they're standing on a beach and it's sunset. She's in a bikini and he's in swimming trunks. Ichigo sucks in a breath of air as he watches himself lean down and kiss her.

Ichigo can feel a similar response to what he had last time when he watches his hands untie the top of her bikini and it falls into the sand. He watches avidly as he and Rukia act all hot and bothered. He shivers when he sees his hands cup her breasts and he sees her inching down his trunks. His eyes widen as she successfully yanks down his trunks, probably because she's so amazingly short, her access is perfect.

The bottom of her bikini follows fast and Ichigo watches as he and Rukia touch each other all over, everywhere and become intimate on the beach. Ichigo feels a bit of pride in his chest, they look perfect together. They look like they're so in love with one another as they make love. Ichigo doesn't fail to miss his lips mouthing the words I love you, yet again. He doesn't take his eyes off it this time, he can't. He watches until he and Rukia both find fulfillment and then fall limp in each other's arms.

Ichigo thinks it looks like heaven. He blushes at that thought and then he watches as they grab their swimwear in their hands and then run into the ocean, naked. He watches as they wash the sand from their bodies and then awkwardly try to get their swimsuits back on while they're all wet. It's far easier to put things on when they're dry, Ichigo realizes as he watches the struggle with a silly grin on his face.

He finally looks away only to look at the closet longingly. He's always loved her, he's always needed her, and now he wants more than anything to feel the happiness he saw so clearly on his face when he looked into the mirror. He knows it's not the sex that had him happy, it was the girl.

Ichigo falls into a restless sleep.

_The Next Evening_

Rukia had only been able to bring herself to look into the mirror three times today. Each time had brought tears into her eyes.

The first time, she had been shown a vision of a third child. This child has her black hair and Ichigo's brown eyes. In this vision, the twins were only barely big enough to walk. They're sitting in Isshin's family room with Isshin and Yuzu, who both look like they're turning into young women and everybody looks happy. It's not the kind of family time she has with Byakuya or the kind of family time she has with Renji, instead it's the family of her dreams.

Rukia had torn herself away from that scene and had not looked again for four hours. When she did, she was awarded a vision of Ichigo presenting her a birthday cake, and their three kids are all clapping as she smiles. They're all wearing birthday hats and Ichigo's looking at her with love shining so obviously in his eyes. She realizes he's looked at her like this before. At Soukyoku, he looked at her like this right after she'd told him he couldn't defeat her brother.

She'd just been so emotionally zapped that day that she'd never analyzed it. Rukia had once again set down the mirror. She thought it was a bit strange that she was already in love with children who did not even exist. All because they looked like they belonged to the two of them. The last vision she was given that day was one that Ichigo saw in his mirror that day too. Ichigo in a captain's robe, and Rukia next to him, smiling up at him lovingly with a lieutenant's badge wrapped around her arm. Around them were a large group of people who all appeared to be related to them, by the looks of them. Several of them had bright orange hair and most of them had brown eyes similar to Ichigo's or blue eyes identical to Rukia's. It's obvious a lot of time has passed since the earlier images she was shown, yet she and Ichigo never look old. The one thing in common with every image she was shown was that they were happily in love.

Rukia waits for the moment with Ichigo and the big mirror.

For Ichigo, he'd only looked twice that day. The first vision he'd been shown was another intimate moment between he and Rukia, in a huge bed. He had watched in fascination at the scene. He was making love to Rukia using his mouth and she appeared to be loving it to death. She has the sheets clutched in her fists and it's obvious she's making a lot of noise and thrashing her body in response to him.

He had watched red faced as Rukia had returned the favor and then he watched as he pushed her down onto the bed and passionately kissed her stomach and breasts before making love to her enthusiastically. Ichigo knew he wanted to have these experiences for real.

When he'd looked the second time, he'd been greeted with the image of him and Rukia together in Soul Society, he was garbed in a captain's robe and Rukia appears to be his lieutenant. He looks at all the people around them, and he thinks they look familiar, although he's sure he's never seen any of them before. When he had noticed multiple orange haired people and many sets of Rukia's blue eyes, he'd gained understanding. He hadn't been able to look again.

Ichigo finally enters his room and he sees Rukia sitting on his bed, holding the small mirror in her hands, though she's not looking at it.

"Rukia?" Ichigo says quietly. Rukia looks up at him with unsure eyes and when she studies his expression, she doesn't know what to make of it. He isn't scowling, but he isn't smiling either.

"What?" Rukia asks quietly.

"You ready?" Ichigo asks as he pulls the cover off of the big mirror and sits next to her.

They stare at their reflections for a moment and they both hold their breath when their reflection fades. They both watch as Ichigo appears in a tux in a room full of people, and they both realize what they're looking at and Ichigo quickly sets the big mirror down and Rukia is relieved. Ichigo scratches his head and looks at her.

She's already looking at him. Ichigo can't pull his face away from her very intense gaze.

"What did you see in your mirror?" Rukia asks softly. Ichigo blushes. He cannot describe the sexual scenes to her. He just can't.

"I saw us, together." Ichigo answers vaguely.

"Did you see our children?" Rukia asks very softly. Ichigo's eyes widen.

"I think so. They were grown up though if it was them." Ichigo says in a tight voice.

"You didn't see them as babies?" Rukia asks in surprise.

"You did?" Ichigo asks instead of answering. Rukia nods her head yes.

"I saw three children." She tells him, but I saw a lot of grown people who could have been our children or grandchildren." Rukia whispers. Ichigo blushes before admitting to her what he saw.

"I was shown images of us conceiving them, I think." Ichigo says, not daring to look her in the face. Rukia blushes at what he's insinuating.

"I didn't see that." Rukia says hastily.

"I saw something else too," Ichigo admits quietly. Rukia finally looks at him.

"What?" She asks, curious.

"I saw that we were really happy." Ichigo says in a voice that makes his longing evident.

"I saw that too." Rukia says, smiling.

"We could be that happy." Ichigo says, looking at her hopefully.

"I want to be that happy." Rukia says, not able to look away now.

"It all starts here." Ichigo says, before giving her a kiss.

Rukia wraps her arms around him and they kiss with a confidence and love not shared by most people who kiss for the first time.

"I hope it never ends." Rukia whispers against his lips. Ichigo kisses her hard before responding.

"I'll never let it. We'll always be together."


	31. As Requested: Urahara's Mirrors 2

_**A/N-I was requested to do a part two and so here it is…enjoy!**_

_As Requested: Urahara's Mirrors 2_

Ichigo wakes up with Rukia in his arms and he smiles as he remembers the mirror incident from the night before. Now they're together. He wonders if they should return the mirrors to Urahara. Ichigo doesn't move as he holds her in his arms, he can hear her steady breathing and he enjoys how great it feels to finally be holding her like this.

He grins as he remembers how he had told Urahara that he and Rukia weren't partners in the way he and Yoruichi were. That had all changed last night. They had gotten in soul form and they had used shunpo to find a place where they wouldn't be disturbed. Ichigo grinned when they wound up at a beach. It wasn't the beach he had been shown in the mirror, but it made him smile all the same.

He and Rukia had sat on the beach with the water lapping up gently on the shore, making for a romantic atmosphere. They had kissed for a long time, in fact he doesn't think they did anything except kiss for the first hour. He remembers the way she slipped her hands into his robe and rubbed his chest as she kissed him, and moaned in a tiny sigh of pleasure.

Ichigo remembers it all with a smile on his face, how she had untied the sash that held up his pants and she had revealed his body, even though he was still wearing the top part of his Shinigami robes. He had groaned in ecstasy as she had run her hands up and down his entire body and then she had started kissing his stomach, and he had lifted her into the air to kiss her.

After twenty minutes of making out like that, he'd sat on the beach and set her in his lap as he started slipping his own hands in her own Shinigami robes. The first thing Ichigo had learned about Rukia that he would have never in a million years suspected was that she wore a very tight binding around her breasts to make them appear nearly nonexistent, which was simply not the case. When he finally completely removed the binding, he was surprised that while Rukia wasn't extremely large, she wasn't nearly as small as most people suspected her to be either.

She had blushed furiously when he had looked in shock at the true size of her breasts, and she sucked in her breath when he focused his hands and mouth on them in a very intimate way. Ichigo is certain they stayed like this making out passionately for more than an hour. They had slowly progressed forward with their passion until she was naked in his arms. He had rolled her around to the bottom and he had told her quietly in a heartfelt voice that he loved her more than anyone before he had entered her.

Ichigo feels his body react at the memory of that. He had never in his life even imagined that it could feel as good as what it did last night when he was with Rukia. The actual making love part hadn't lasted long since his body reacted so forcefully to the feeling of being inside her, but the foreplay had lasted for hours and they'd both found enjoyment, satisfaction, and pleasure in the evening.

Ichigo grins as he remembers how Rukia had made a camp fire afterwards, with kidou so that they could rinse off in the water and then dry off by the fire. It was really nice knowing they didn't have to worry about being seen in their soul forms.

They had stayed there on the beach talking for several hours before they'd come back and passed out in his bed.

Ichigo feels Rukia start to stir and he grins. He wonders if she'll be surprised when she realizes where she slept last night. She sits up quickly at first and blushes furiously, but all of the embarrassment of her memories are gone the instant Isshin opens the door with a flying kick meant for Ichigo but it's flying straight at her instead since she's in Ichigo's bed.

Rukia senses it coming and she dives into Ichigo's arms and she watches as Ichigo brings his foot up to meet his father's face instead of his father landing into bed with them.

"Get the hell out of here!" Ichigo shouts as his father holds his nose in pain, before his eyes widen in understanding.

"You didn't defile my dear Rukia-chan did you?" Isshin asks in a hoarse whisper. Ichigo and Rukia blush in response.

"Get out now!" Ichigo yells again. Isshin yells instead.

"You'd better marry her!" Isshin yells, causing Karin and Yuzu to appear with surprise on their faces. Ichigo turns even redder with the arrival of his sisters but he replies anyways.

"I planned on it." Ichigo mutters and Isshin grabs Yuzu and starts dancing in a circle.

"Your brother has finally come to his senses, it's a blessed miracle!" Isshin sings as he twirls Yuzu around faster.

"Quit congregating in my bedroom!" Ichigo shouts again.

"You're getting married, Ichi-ni?" Karin asks, watching with pleasure as her brother's face practically turns purple.

"Damn it! Listen to me!" Ichigo yells, only to be ignored by all.

"Rukia-chan really will be part of the family!" Isshin says as a big tear rolls down his face. "Masaki will be so happy!" Isshin says, causing Karin and Ichigo to roll their eyes.

"Put a sock in it old man! Rukia, I could use your help here, you know!" Ichigo snaps at her.

Rukia's transfixed on the scene in front of her. When she had been adopted into the Kuchiki family, there had been no joy, no smiles, no heartfelt welcoming, and certainly no love. This was totally different, and she _loved_ it.

"It is my dream to be part of a family as wonderful as this one." Rukia says really softly, causing Ichigo to give her a sweet look of love.

"You're already part of it, even without us being married. Nobody is even shocked at your presence here in my bed," Ichigo points out with a scowl.

"Well duh, Ichi-ni, you've only loved her forever now." Karin says as she rolls her eyes. Ichigo's face which had started to go back to its normal color had instantly turned red again. "Who could be shocked at the obvious? It was more shocking to walk in every day and find you in bed alone, to be honest." Karin says, leaning against the wall. Rukia grins.

Isshin doubles over in laugher at Karin's words and Ichigo scowls at both of them.

"Get out!" Ichigo finally jumps out of the bed and Yuzu hightails it out with Karin quick on her heels. Isshin backs away slowly.

"Calm down now, you don't have to be violent with your own family!" Isshin says, edging closer to the door. Rukia giggles now.

"Scram!" Ichigo yells as he takes a step towards his father. Isshin turns and sprints out, and Ichigo walks over and slams the door shut behind him.

"They're funny," Rukia says quickly.

"They're annoying!" Ichigo yells in the direction of the door. "Standing around in my room acting like it's the perfect place to discuss the future. What in the hell is wrong with them?" Ichigo asks in embarrassment.

"They just love you a lot. I've never been a part of such a warm family before either." Rukia says a bit wistfully.

"That's all about to change." Ichigo warns her with a grin.

"Kiss me, Ichigo." Rukia says in a bossy voice. She stands on his bed. Ichigo walks over and is amused that her face is actually above his for once.

"Please lean down so I can reach you," Ichigo says with a grin, knowing that's not something she'll hear very often. Rukia giggles as she leans down and kisses him on the lips. She nibbles on his lips a little bit before pulling away.

"Ichigo, let me see the mirror you were given." Rukia says to him softly. He nods.

"Let me see yours." Ichigo says, taking note in how it sounds like they're having an almost naughty conversation. They trade mirrors and they sit on the bed.

Rukia holds his mirror in her hands, and she is surprised when she sees the same scene he did yesterday, where she's on top of him, making love to him, and he's helping her by holding her thighs. She notices that every inch of her body is visible in the mirror and she quickly sets it down and blushes. She can't even look him in the eye.

Even though they made love last night, she'd kept her eyes closed a lot of the time and it hadn't felt nearly as explicit as the scene she'd just witnessed in the mirror.

While she was looking in the mirror he had been given, he was looking into the mirror that she had been given.

When Ichigo saw the twins, he felt his breath catch in his throat. He could hardly breathe as he looked at each one of them holding a child in their arms. He also notices they look amazingly and blissfully happy as a family. Rukia is smiling up at him with all the love in the world shining in her eyes, and Ichigo is transfixed.

When he sees the orange haired baby open its eyes, his own eyes widen as they're exactly the same color as Rukia's eyes. He can feel a tightness in his chest and he knows without a doubt he wants all of these images that they've been shown to come true, he wants it with every fiber of his body. He looks over at her and sees her face is bright red, and he can only guess at what she'd been shown, now that he's seen two of the children she had spoken of.

"We sure were given different images," Rukia says in an embarrassed voice.

"I saw the twins." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia gives him a grin.

"Weren't they cute?" She asks him with a smile. Ichigo takes her hand.

"They were beautiful." He replies.

"We need to think about how we're going to inform everyone of our future." Rukia warns him. "Like Byakuya ni-sama." She reminds him. Ichigo's face looks like he wants to hurl and Rukia giggles.

"I don't even want to think about that right now." Ichigo says with in a worried voice. He can't even imagine what her brother's expression would be if he knew the things that Ichigo and Rukia had done together last night.

"It's not like we can get married without telling him first," Rukia reminds him. She squeezes his hand.

"I'm just afraid he'd want to fight and I know you'd be unhappy with me if I killed him," Ichigo says in a worried voice, and Rukia laughs.

"I don't think he would try to kill you." She tells him.

"But you're not completely sure either are you?" Ichigo asks her nervously. Rukia smiles at him.

"I think ni-sama wishes for my happiness." She tells him honestly. "I think that includes marrying you." She tells him.

"How soon do you want to get married?" Ichigo asks her with wide eyes.

"I don't know, what about you?" Rukia asks him.

"At least a year." Ichigo tells her with a bit of panic swelling in his stomach. Everything had stayed at one point for so long and now they're barreling full force at marriage. The thought makes him nervous on instinct.

"I think you're right. We could probably plan a beautiful wedding in a year." Rukia agrees. Ichigo swallows again in nervousness. He hadn't expected to talk about wedding so soon, and yet that's exactly what they're doing.

"Doesn't it scare you at all?" Ichigo asks her in a whisper. Rukia looks at him and smiles.

"Not one bit," she tells him, which makes all of his worry vanish. If she's this sure then he doesn't think he has a reason to worry. He flashes a weak smile at her.

"I'm glad you're sure, otherwise I wouldn't be able to remain calm." He tells her honestly. Rukia grins and squeezes his hand again. He leans down and kisses her.

"We also have to tell all of your friends," Rukia reminds him, and Ichigo's face turns white. That will definitely be embarrassing.

"Should we return the mirrors to Urahara first?" Ichigo asks her, and she nods.

"We should also thank him." Rukia tells Ichigo as she stands. He stands next to her.

"We should probably agree to go on that double date he was asking us about too." Ichigo reminds her, and Rukia grins.

"Yes, definitely, Rukia agrees as they grab the mirrors and head out of his room.

_At Urahara's Shop_

"So you two are planning a wedding?" Urahara asks in surprise. Rukia and Ichigo grin at him.

"It was all thanks to you and those mirrors." Rukia tells him as she points at the mirrors on the table.

"Wow, I'm impressed, I had just hoped they'd guide you into admitting your feelings, I didn't think you two would take the full plunge into marriage yet though." Urahara says with wide eyes.

"We also thought we should accept your offer on going on a double date with Yoruichi when she returns," Rukia says, still smiling.

"I still can't wrap my head around the fact that you're talking about a wedding," Urahara says to her.

"It's not like we're getting married tomorrow," Rukia says in an exasperated voice.

"Still though, yesterday you two weren't even dating!" Urahara argues.

"Actually, we started to date yesterday," Rukia argues.

"Plus, I've loved her for the longest time," Ichigo tells him. Urahara looks at them and shakes his head at the turn of events.

"Damn, with you two it's all or nothing isn't it?" He asks scratching his head. Rukia and Ichigo grin at that observation.

"You could say that," Rukia says in agreement.

"It's not like I can just be together with her just partway," Ichigo says, defending his honor.

"I don't know if I'll ever understand you," Urahara says, knowing this marriage talk will have Yoruichi all over his case. "You're going to make me look really bad." He says next, causing them to laugh.

"It's about time you popped the question, you know. Maybe if you did she'd stop appearing naked in front of other guys," Ichigo says pointedly.

"What?" Rukia says, mortified.

"Yeah, I was given quite a shock the first time she revealed her true form to me in Soul Society." Ichigo says with a blush.

"You looked at Yoruichi's fine body?" Urahara says in a tight and a bit outraged voice.

"Chill! She's the one revealing herself like that, and I'm not the only guy she did that to, either!" Ichigo says, moving behind Rukia.

"Still, I'm chafed. How would you like it if I looked at Rukia's naked body?" Urahara asks before he grins, "Wait I already have." He says with a smirk. Rukia gasps and Ichigo suddenly turns very serious very quickly, it's enough to make Urahara jump in nervousness.

"What are you talking about?" Ichigo asks him.

"The night she saved your life and gave you her powers, she was badly injured. Who do you think healed her?" Urahara says holding up his hands at Ichigo's flaring reiatsu. "It was for medical purposes, not perverted purposes!" Urahara insists.

"Don't bring it up in front of me again and don't let me hear that you've brought it up to anyone else." Ichigo says in a clipped voice. Urahara tips his hat.

"Understood." He says respectfully.

"We're going to get going to tell Ichigo's friends the good news," Rukia tells Urahara with a small glare.

"I will let Yoruichi know the good news when she gets back," Urahara says, sighing in relief that Ichigo had decided against killing him after his thoughtless comment about having seen Kuchiki naked before.

The pair leave and Urahara sinks into his seat.

_I should really think before I speak._

Rukia and Ichigo go to see Sado first. He doesn't show a whole lot of reaction, but he does grin when Ichigo tells him that he'd like him to be his best man at the ceremony.

"No problem." Sado had answered easily and both Ichigo and Rukia had grinned. They hadn't expected a huge reaction out of him which was why they'd decided to see him first.

"Do you know who you want to be your maid of honor?" Ichigo asks Rukia suddenly in front of Sado, so that he would know who he'd be escorting. Rukia grins.

"You'll never guess who I want to ask to do it." She tells him.

"Inoue?" Sado asks quietly, and Rukia shakes her head no.

"Yoruichi?" Ichigo asks next, and Rukia shakes her head no.

"Shiba Kuukaku." Rukia replies with a smirk. "She and I have become good friends since you saved me in Soul Society, and I think she'd be thrilled to be a part of it." Rukia answers before cracking up at their expressions.

Ichigo looks like he wants to run away at the mere mention of her name, and Sado is standing there with his mouth open. He would have never dreamed that he'd be escorting Shiba Kuukaku to Ichigo and Rukia's wedding.

"Wow." Sado says, for lack of anything better to say.

"Good luck, man." Ichigo says, clapping Sado on the back. "At least if she decides to beat you up, I think you're tough enough to take it," Ichigo says encouragingly.

"We'll see you soon Sado!" Rukia says cheerfully as she drags Ichigo out of there.

"What?" Ichigo complains.

"If you make remarks like that in front of her, she'll have your head. Stop doing that." Rukia orders him, and Ichigo pouts before he nods.

"You're right, she's a dangerous woman." Ichigo agrees. They walk to Ishida's place next since it's closest to Sado, and Ishida greets them with contempt as he holds a drink in his hand.

"To what do I owe the honor of being visited by two powerful Shinigami? Has Soul Society decided I'm no longer fit to live among the living?" Ishida asks sarcastically.

"Cut the crap. We've come to bring you good news." Ichigo assures him. Ishida pushes his glasses up his nose and glares impatiently.

"What?" Ishida asks as he takes a sip of the drink in his hand. Bad move, because what comes next makes him spit what's in his mouth all over Kurosaki.

"We're getting married." Rukia tells him cheerfully.

"Oh gross! Ishida!" Ichigo stands there with liquid dripping down his face and clothing.

"Sorry! You shouldn't joke like that as someone is taking a drink, it's not wise." Ishida lectures them.

"Who said it was a joke?" Ichigo yells at him, and Ishida gawks.

"You're serious?" Ishida asks wide eyed.

"Yes!" Ichigo and Rukia reply in unison. Ishida's eyes get very huge and then he falls to his knees in front of Rukia which startles both Ichigo and Rukia.

"Please, I beg of you, Kuchiki-san! Let me design your wedding dress! Please!" Ishida's voice is pleading and desperate. Both Rukia and Ichigo's mouths fall open at this. Rukia nods slowly.

"Only if you make it a gorgeous dress," Rukia says hesitantly. Ishida nods and jumps to his feet.

"Oh it will be, it will be the most magnificent dress that anyone in history has ever seen, you won't regret this!" Ishida says happily. Ichigo gives him a strange stare.

"Why are you so excited about this?" Ichigo asks Ishida with suspicion.

"I have been considering becoming a wedding dress designer, and if I do a phenomenal job with her dress, I could be successful in no time at all!" Ishida says with wide and happy eyes.

"I always knew you were weird. No normal guy would join the handy crafts club." Ichigo says with a scoff.

"Shut up, Kurosaki." Ishida says in an aggravated voice. Rukia smiles genuinely at Ishida.

"Alright, I'll let you do it, make it wondrous!" Rukia tells Ishida who nods happily.

"We're going to go tell Tatsuki and Inoue next." Ichigo tells Ishida, who suddenly looks curious.

"Can I come with you?" Ishida asks. Rukia and Ichigo look surprised."Why?" They ask in unison, and then they blush.

"I just want to see Inoue-san's expression." Ishida says quietly. Ichigo and Rukia look at each other and nod.

"You can come if you want to." Rukia tells him."Hang on, let me change my shirt!" Ishida says, earning another glare from Ichigo.

"If you have a plain tee-shirt up there then bring it down. It's the least you could do after spitting your drink on me! Don't bring me any of your Quincy garb!" Ichigo shouts at Ishida's disappearing back.

The three of them head to Tatsuki's house, where Inoue happens to be hanging out. Ichigo is in a much better mood since Ishida had brought him something acceptable to wear. They finally reach Tatsuki's door and knock. They smile when she answers the door.

"What's up?" Tatsuki asks, looking at the trio.

"We've come to bring you some good news," Ichigo says as he grabs Rukia's hand. Tatsuki's eyes widen and her mouth falls open. Just before she'd answered the door, Orihime had been confiding to her that she's still in love with _Kurosaki-kun_.

"Oh yeah?" Tatsuki says as Inoue walks up behind her.

"Yes, we're getting married." Rukia announces with a smile. Inoue gasps in shock and Tatsuki stands there with her mouth gaping wide open as if she can't believe what she just heard.

"Seriously?" Tatsuki asks in a breathless voice. Rukia nods her head and Ishida somehow shimmies himself over to Inoue's side.

"Are you okay?" Ishida asks very softly. Inoue nods at him, even though he can tell she's unhappy.

"When are you getting married?" Tatsuki's asking as Ishida talks to Inoue.

"One year." Ichigo answers, and Ishida's head pops up.

"Kuchiki-san, you should come over very soon so we can start discussing your dress," Ishida says nervously.

"Sure." Rukia tells him.

"Anyways, Rukia and I thought it would be nice if the two of you would be bridesmaids." Ichigo tells them. "Ishida we wanted you to usher Inoue, but if you're too busy with the dress-" Ichigo starts to say only to be cut off by Ishida.

"I would love to escort Inoue-san!" Ishida says happily.

"Why are you asking me, we've never been very close." Tatsuki says softly to Rukia, and she grins at the girl.

"You're very close to Ichigo though, right? You've known him since he was a little boy. I have a friend like that too, Renji. We agreed that if Renji can be one of Ichigo's ushers, then you can be one of the bridesmaids." Rukia says with a genuine smile. Tatsuki smiles back.

"I'd love to." Tatsuki says, and Inoue manages to nod her head as well.

"Of course, Kuchiki-san, you're one of my dearest friends. I happily accept." Inoue says, though it takes all of her effort to say it with a faint smile.

"Who will be escorting me?" Tatsuki asks suspiciously. Ichigo gives her an apologetic look before he answers. He hopes she won't be too annoyed, it could be worse.

"We plan on asking Renji." Ichigo tells her and Tatsuki nods. At least she didn't have to walk with Keigo. She's never had a real discussion with Renji but she knows who he is.

"Are you asking Keigo and Mizuiro to be a part of it?" Tatsuki asks with a grin. Ichigo grins back at her with a knowing smile.

"Yep. Keigo will be walking Karin down the aisle. She's the only girl I trust to be able to keep him on his best behavior without actually killing him." Ichigo tells her, and Tatsuki laughs. Karin would have no problem keeping Keigo in line.

"Will Yuzu be in it too?" Tatsuki asks. Ichigo nods his head yes.

"She will be escorted by a friend of mine that I don't think you've met. Hanatarou." Ichigo says quickly. Tatsuki doesn't believe she's heard that name before.

"Who will you pair up with Mizuiro?" Inoue asks next. Rukia grins at her.

"I was going to ask Hinamori to do it. She and I have been friends for many years." Rukia says, surprising Ichigo.

"You have?" He asks her quietly.

"We were very close right before everything happened with Aizen." Rukia whispers.

"Who will give you away?" Tatsuki asks her.

"I'm hoping my brother will do it," Rukia tells her.

"Have I ever seen him?" Tatsuki asks.

"No, but hopefully you'll meet him at the wedding." Rukia tells her. She can feel Ichigo's eyes on her. He does not like the sound of Byakuya giving Rukia away. Ichigo thinks Byakuya is likely to go bankai on his ass when he finds out what they're planning.

_Later that night_

"We've told everyone here, now we just need to go to Soul Society and do the same thing there." Rukia tells him happily.

"Yeah, I hope your brother stays peaceful." Ichigo says as he pulls Rukia into bed.

"I know one way to make you forget about my brother," Rukia tells him with a giggle.

Ichigo agrees later on, making love to Rukia is the perfect way to forget his problems.

_A Week Later_

"Damn I am so glad that's over." Ichigo says as Rukia heals the many cuts on his face and arms.

"I didn't think he'd release his sword on you, I swear!" Rukia tells Ichigo.

"Don't worry about it, I shut him up fast enough didn't I?" Ichigo asks her.

"I understand why you wanted to tell Byakuya last, but I think that ended up provoking his temper. Someone must have told him before we did. That's the only explanation I can come up with for why he acted the way he did!" Rukia says as Ichigo's wounds heal in front of her eyes.

"At least he agreed to give you away." Ichigo grumbles in an annoyed voice.

"I'm going to lick you all over your entire body tonight," Rukia whispers.Ichigo finds his first smile since his confrontation with Byakuya.

"I can't wait." Ichigo says as he pulls her in his arms and kisses her.

_The mirrors were right. He has never been happier than what he is in her arms._


	32. Interview

_Interview_

When Rukia stayed in the living world without going back for an entire month, she and Ichigo had confessed their feelings to one another and they have started dating. They spend a lot of their private time touching and kissing each other, and whenever they think they can get away with it without getting caught, they make love with one another.

They're in a serious relationship, which all of his friends and family know. Everyone seems very happy for them. Rukia grins when she remembers the shocked expressions when she and Ichigo were caught kissing by all of them on the school roof. They had explained red in the face that they were together.

Who doesn't know though, is Soul Society. Mainly because Rukia knows her brother would want to know Ichigo's intentions towards her. When she had told Ichigo this, he had agreed with her that they shouldn't tell Soul Society just yet. They've only just started exploring their relationship, no reason to make it all stuffy by adding Byakuya into the mix.

Rukia thinks of how long it took for them to finally reveal their feelings for one another. She knows Ichigo wouldn't want to be interrogated by her brother and so she hasn't informed anybody from that side that she and Ichigo are together. Everyone else knows they're not supposed to mention it to Soul Society too.

That's why when she and Ichigo were making out passionately in his bed, she pushes him off the bed completely and suddenly sits up when she senses Shingami reiatsu approaching at high speed. Ichigo who doesn't sense it, pops off the floor and glares at her angrily for pushing him out of bed so roughly.

"Damn it, what in the hell, Rukia?" Ichigo asks in a near shout. "Why'd you shove me out of bed?" He demands as Rukia puts a finger to her lips. Ichigo realizes her expression is very serious, and he wonders what's going on. He tries, but he senses nothing amiss.

Moments later two people shunpo into the room, causing Ichigo to jump and squeak in surprise. Ichigo's eyes open wide in surprise at the arrival of Sui Fong and Ise Nanao into his room. Rukia looks just as surprised to see them as he is.

They see Ichigo and they both immediately start crowding him towards the wall.

"We're here to interview you." Sui Fong says in a threatening voice that sounds like she means business.

"Yes, if we provide an interview from you for Soul Society's news, they'll donate a generous sum of money to the League of Women Shinigami." Nanao says in a monotonous voice.

"You would have known about this if you had come back last week for the meeting," Sui Fong tells Rukia.

Ichigo and Rukia glance at each other and gulp nervously. They were more in the mood to be making out than to be interviewed for Soul Society's newspaper.

"First question! Kurosaki Ichigo, tell us about your hobbies!" Nanao-chan says to Ichigo.

"I like to play my guitar and watch movies," Ichigo responds in a nervous voice when Sui Fong looks like she's going to punch him if he takes too long to answer.

"Which division in the Court of Pure Souls do you think is the best?" Nanao-chan asks next after she writes his previous answers down. She pushes her glasses up as she waits for his answer.

"Probably Thirteenth, since they helped me rescue Rukia." Ichigo says next, and Nanao writes that down too.

"Ah yes, the famed rescue of Kuchiki Rukia. Tell us, why you did so much for her." Nanao says next, and Ichigo swallows.

"She saved my life. She meant too much to me to not save her." Ichigo replies haltingly. He doesn't really like the direction this interview seems to be heading.

"Is that all it was?" Sui Fong asks him next.

"I wanted to save her." Ichigo says next. "I can't imagine my life without her in it." Ichigo says, causing Rukia's eyes to widen in wonder at his sweet words.

"So what is going on in your love life?" Nanao asks next, glancing between the two.

"Nothing," Ichigo says, turning red. This is definitely a topic he wants to avoid.

"Is there anything going on between you and Inoue Orihime?" Sui Fong asks next.

"What? Never!" Ichigo says forcefully. "She is just a friend. Nothing more." Ichigo says in a clear voice.

"What about Kuchiki Rukia? Is she just a friend too?" Nanao asks him with a poker face.

"She's much more than a friend," Ichigo says softly. "She's my partner. I'm lucky to have her in my life." Ichigo says, causing Sui Fong to grin a little bit.

"Does that mean that there is something going on in your love life?" Sui Fong asks him, and Ichigo shakes his head.

"There's nothing to tell there," Ichigo lies hastily. Sui Fong's instincts could be dangerous.

"Are you waiting for something? It seems to me that you two make a really cute couple." Nanao says next, causing them both to blush again. Rukia doesn't meet the other women's gazes.

"I haven't really thought about it," Ichigo mumbles uncomfortably as he glances at Rukia who is also looking away from him. He wishes he could just disappear right now, he's mortified.

"Have you considered asking Kuchiki Byakuya for his blessing to be with Rukia?" Nanao asks with a bit more interest. She smiles when Ichigo turns even redder.

"No, not at all." Ichigo says as he looks at them nervously.

"Why not? You went to such lengths to save her life, why are you acting like she means nothing to you?" Nanao asks with a bit of sadness in her voice, and Ichigo forgets to be nervous, because he gets annoyed.

"What do you mean I act like she means nothing to me! She's everything to me!" Ichigo responds without thinking, and his face turns pale when he realizes what he just said.

"And the truth finally comes out." Sui Fong says with a grin. "Everything huh?"

"Why didn't you just say that in the first place? Were you afraid to tell us?" Nanao asks him curiously. Ichigo shakes his head in disbelief. Did he really just say that to news reporters? _Damn it!_

"I think we have what we need here." Sui Fong smirks as she turns and disappears. Nanao leaves right behind her and Ichigo sinks to his knees with his hands in his face.

"What in the hell just freaking happened?" Ichigo asks barely above a whisper.

"Your temper got the better of you, yet again," Rukia says with a sigh. She grins next. "I mean everything to you, huh?" She asks him, and Ichigo blushes and refuses to meet her eyes. Rukia can't stop watching him as he squirms uncomfortably. "Really?"

"Don't act like you didn't know." Ichigo mutters, clearly embarrassed. He still won't look at her.

"Come here." Rukia orders him, and Ichigo drags himself across the room and sits beside her. Rukia puts her hand on his arm.

"I can't believe what just happened." Ichigo grumbles, and Rukia smiles at him. She rubs his arm a bit.

"You mean everything to me too." She whispers, and she keeps smiling as he turns his eyes to meet hers.

"Now everybody in Soul Society is going to know I'm in love with you." Ichigo says in a whisper.

"I think they already knew." Rukia tells him, causing Ichigo to give her a quick glance.

"Really?" He asks her hopefully, which she thinks is so adorable.

"Yes, you've never been able to hide your feelings as well as you think you do," Rukia informs him. Ichigo groans in frustration at that remark. She just wasn't cheering him up with these words.

"Seriously?" Ichigo asks in a forlorn voice.

"Yes, but I don't mind that about you." Rukia tells him as she leans towards him and gives him a searing kiss on the lips. Ichigo grabs her around the waist and kisses her back passionately. He starts to feel much better.

"I'm going to make love to you all night long." Ichigo warns her in a low husky voice.

"Sounds divine. Take off all your clothes." Rukia says with a wink.

Ichigo is naked in record time and Rukia stares at his body with blatant admiration. She stands and places her hands on his perfect butt before she kisses his chest directly in front of her. He lets out a little chuckle when she squeezes his butt cheeks and sighs. He starts to undress her as well.

He lifts her in his arms and kisses her fiercely before he throws her on the bed and jumps on top of her.

"I'll be making love to you forever," Ichigo murmurs in her ear before he starts bringing pleasure to every inch of her body. There isn't a spot of skin on her body that he hasn't touched or kissed by the time the night ends.

Rukia lays sprawled in Ichigo's arms in the morning as he snoozes and she grins at him. He's such a fantastic lover and partner. She can't help but love him with every fiber of her being. She's always loved him and she always will.

She yawns and smiles as she considers the future, and before she falls asleep, he throws his arm around her and her very last thought before she falls asleep is that she loves him dearly.


	33. As Requested: Headlines

**A/N-I was asked to do the reactions to the interview chapter which was the chapter prior to this one. It's now a two shot like several others, all by request, and as always this chapter is dedicated to the one who requested it, you know who you are. It has its own title though, hence this long annoying Authors note. If you have not read **_**Interview**_**, please read that before this one. Enjoy!**

_Headlines_

Ukitake looks at the front page of Soul Society's news and his eyes widen. Across the front in big letters the headline reads _Kurosaki Confesses!_ A picture of Ichigo looking very nervous is on the front page along with the headline.

You have to open it to the second page for the interview though, and when you turn the page, a very large layout photo of Ichigo and Rukia who have very obviously been surprised while in the middle of making out is stretched across the page. They both look fairly horrified by the fact that a flash just shined in their faces.

_Oh dear._

Ukitake can't stop grinning and feeling desperately worried for the pair featured in the paper. What will happen when Byakuya sees this? Ukitake looks for the name of the Shinigami who got the picture and he shakes his head in amusement.

He found that he wasn't the least bit surprised. This kind of photo is exactly the kind Matsumoto Rangiku would like to take, just to see the kind of fireworks that exploded afterwards. He hopes she is nowhere near Byakuya in the next week or so. Ukitake wonders if he's seen it yet. He decides today is probably a good day to take a stroll.

Meanwhile, Kuchiki Byakuya has not even looked at the paper yet. He has lot of important paperwork to do, and when he walked in, he'd set some more paperwork on top of the paper without ever seeing its headline or picture, which someone had purposely left face up. Byakuya is surprised that Renji isn't in the office. Renji knows how Byakuya feels about tardiness, and so he figures Renji must have a damn good reason for not being around when he's supposed to be.

Byakuya finds that he's finishing his work a little faster than usual. Probably because everybody is doing what they're supposed to be doing, and not one person is slacking off. _Except Renji, who still hasn't shown up to his desk._ Byakuya nods in satisfaction at how smoothly everything runs when everybody does like they're supposed to.

He can't hear any arguments, any shouting, any insubordination whatsoever. Byakuya doesn't even realize his usually stoic face is actually curved into a tiny smile. Days like this almost never come along. In fact it hadn't been like this since Hisana died.

Byakuya drops his pen as he considers that fact.

_Has something happened that I'm unaware of?_

Byakuya decides to take a break from his paperwork and go for a walk. The first thing he notices is that people outside of his division seem to be discussing something with great excitement, but every time he approaches, they stop completely and stay silent until he is out of hearing reach. Byakuya grows more suspicious.

_What is going on? Something has definitely happened._

Byakuya feels his heart race a bit, but no hell moths have come to bring a message nor has anyone in his division come to report any people missing or dead in his division or family. Byakuya is starting to get frustrated when he suddenly notices Ukitake, who appears to be hurrying away in the opposite direction, with his gaze averted away from Byakuya.

Byakuya scoffs and uses shunpo to catch up to Ukitake in an instant.

"Byakuya, good afternoon." Ukitake says as he carefully studies Byakuya's face. When he doesn't look like he's ready to kill, Ukitake smiles. "I didn't expect you to be so calm."

"What are you talking about?" Byakuya asks in a bored voice. Ukitake's eyes widen. It can't be possible…how can he not know about it yet? Ukitake just stares at Byakuya dumbfounded.

"I…it's…nothing, never mind." Ukitake says since he can't figure out how to break the news to Byakuya who tends to be a spoiled brat a lot of the time. Ukitake suddenly notices Rangiku-san who appears to be rushing over to the two of them.

"What do you mean?" Byakuya asks, truly confused.

"I have to go." Ukitake says suddenly. He doesn't want to be anywhere near this explosion. Ukitake flash steps the hell out of there before Byakuya can protest. Byakuya doesn't even have time to react to Ukitake's rude and sudden departure because Matsumoto slaps him on the shoulder, hard.

"Captain Kuchiki! I have a message for you, Rukia-san asked me to give it to you! Please don't be mad at them!" Rangiku says and she starts to turn away only to have Byakuya grab her arm in a grip that isn't painful, but also doesn't allow for escape.

"Care to elaborate?" Byakuya asks, wanting to make sense of the situation. Matsumoto looks around and suddenly realizes all of the people who were nearby are now gone…completely. She swallows nervously.

"The paper," Matsumoto says nervously. Byakuya raises his eyebrow ever so slightly.

"I'm afraid I don't understand." Byakuya says in a low and annoyed voice.

"You'll have to go read the paper to understand." She tells him before suddenly yanking her arm away. She like Ukitake, disappears. She is terrified he'll follow and so she goes to her captain and decides to work diligently for the rest of the day beside him.

Toushirou has expected that her role in the paper might have her in the office today and he smiles since there is much work to be caught up on.

"I will shunpo out of here when Byakuya shows up if you don't work." He told her, the moment she appeared looking breathless and terrified. She nods her head in acquiescence and immediately sits down to work. Matsumoto spends the rest of the day glancing over her shoulder in fear.

Luckily for her, after she told him to read the paper, he went back to his office to do exactly that. When he realizes his paper is under his paperwork, he pulls it out and his eyes narrow at the headline.

When Byakuya opens the cover and sees Ichigo and Rukia in a very compromising position, with his hands very obviously up her shirt, his reiatsu raises to a terrifying level. All of a sudden Renji's absence and his subordinate's diligence makes complete sense.

Byakuya is at the editor's room to the newspaper in under five seconds. The editor smiles hugely at the headline for the next paper, which a copy will definitely be sent in through Kurosaki's bedroom window the day it comes out.

_Wedding Announcement From Kuchiki Byakuya, Pleased To Announce His Sister's Official Engagement to Kurosaki Ichigo!_

Byakuya is only a tiny bit bothered that his sister and Kurosaki won't mind the end result, but they're sure to shit their pants at the paper itself. Byakuya finds his first smile of the day and heads back to his office to enjoy the peace and quiet. Rather than dwell on the inevitable, he'll take advantage of the peace and quiet and finish his work.

_The Next Day_

Rukia wakes up in Ichigo's arm and sighs a breath of relief. The paper should have come out by now. She and Ichigo had not expected that after Sui Fong and Ise Nanao left that a half hour later, Rangiku-san would show up with her camera. If Byakuya were going to come try and kill Ichigo, he would have done so by now. The paper should have come out yesterday in Soul Society.

Rukia grins when she feels Ichigo's arms tighten around her. She runs her hands on his naked body beneath the covers. They had wanted to make love in case it was Ichigo's last night on earth. Ichigo had propped a chair up against the knob of his door to make it nearly impossible to get in and they had slept naked in each other's arms.

Rukia starts to panic when she senses Shinigami reiatsu and she pulls the cover tighter against her chest in complete terror when it flashes into the room. Ichigo opens his eyes at the activity and their eyes widen at the sight of Rangiku-san.

"Why are you here?" Rukia asks in a very worried voice. Matsumoto pulls the newest paper from her robe, all rolled up in a bundle.

"Is that the article on us?" Ichigo asks nervously with a scowl.

"I knew I was forgetting something!" Rangiku-san says with a sigh as she presses the rolled up paper towards Rukia who lets go of the cover with one hand to take it. "That was yesterday's paper. This here, is today's paper." She tells them with a huge smile. She jumps onto the window ledge and grins at them. "Congratulations!" She says before she disappears.

Rukia slowly unfolds the paper. Ichigo and Rukia's eyes grow as big as dinner plates when they read the headline.

They look at each other with a mixture of embarrassment, mortification, and confusion. While it was certainly shocking and enough to make them want to pee themselves on the spot, it didn't bother either one of them all that much.

After staring in shock at the front cover of the page, Rukia finally turns towards Ichigo.

"Want to celebrate?" She asks him as she lets the cover fall from her chest. Ichigo's eyes widen in appreciation and he smiles at her in sheer happiness.

"Definitely." Ichigo tells her before he pulls her back in his arms. "I love you, Rukia."

"And I love you, Ichigo." Rukia says before they let their passion take over.

It ended up being a _great_ day! (They didn't leave the bed until dinnertime)


	34. As Requested: The Story

**A/N-I was requested to do part three and so here it is. If you have not read **_**Interview**_** and **_**Headlines**_**, please read those first. As always, this chapter is dedicated to the reader that requested it. Enjoy!**

_The Story_

A week has passed since Rukia and Ichigo got the newspaper delivered by Matsumoto Rangiku. Two days after she'd delivered the paper, Ichigo and Rukia had started to relax, and neither anticipated that his family would find and see the newspaper. Explaining that to his father and sisters had been beyond embarrassing and uncomfortable as hell, but Ichigo is managing.

Isshin had started hopping around in circles and had beamed at Rukia, telling her he always knew she was the one for Ichigo. Rukia had grinned at that and Ichigo had turned bright red. No matter how many times they make love, or tell each other that they love one another, he still is easily embarrassed when other people remark on his feelings. That includes his father.

They haven't gone to Soul Society yet though, Ichigo's been putting that off as long as possible since he doubts that Byakuya is accepting as the newspaper made it seem. Ichigo thinks it was probably a trap to lull them into a false sense of security before he's castrated by Byakuya's thousand cherry blossoms. Rukia had scoffed at that notion, but she'd agreed to hold off.

It seems that the two newspaper issues that focused on Ichigo as the front cover were more widely sold than any other newspapers in the past twenty years. For this reason, the newspaper editor in Soul Society decided to do another piece on the couple and on Ichigo's family.

For this, they arranged to have every singe member of the League of Women Shinigami go to the living world. They can't think of a better story than to turn Kurosaki Ichigo's world upside down for an entire day by inviting that energetic group to do the honors, since they had been the ones to begin it all. Once again, they're promised a generous donation for their efforts.

Ichigo's family finally started calming down a couple of days ago, and everyone seems to be in good spirits regarding the couple. That's why when the entire family with Rukia was sitting in the family room talking, they all jumped at the sound of a crash in Ichigo's bedroom. Everybody traded glances when they heard numerous footsteps run from Ichigo's room to the first floor of the house, and less than a minute from when they heard the crash, the entire League of Women Shinigami are standing in the Kurosaki family room.

"Icchy! Hi!" Yachiru calls out with a huge smile and an energetic wave.

Isshin's eyes are huge and he appears to look as though he just entered heaven at all of the beautiful Shinigami he can see. Karin seems to be most intrigued by Yachiru, and Yuzu's eyes are very wide since she can sense their presence, but she cannot see them. Ichigo and Rukia's eyes widen to huge proportions.

"What are you doing here?" Ichigo asks them nervously.

"We've come to get the story!" Kiyone tells him excitedly.

"Everyone wants to know the reaction to the last newspaper that featured the two of you," Nanao tells them with a small grin playing on her lips.

"What's going on?" Yuzu whispers to Karin.

"You wouldn't believe it even if I told you," Karin whispers back, letting her focus rest back on Yachiru. The pink hair and the tiny physique captivates her.

"Leave me alone!" Ichigo mutters as he covers his face with his hand.

"Ichi-ni? Are these friends of yours?" Karin asks as she gestures to the women in the room.

"You could say that," Nanao asks as she smiles at his sister. "What is your name?" She asks next.

"I'm Kurosaki Karin." Karin answers her and Nanao nods.

"And what do you think of your brother's engagement?" Kiyone asks with a giggle.

"We were very surprised." Karin answers her and then she scowls at her father. He's staring back and forth between the breasts of Rangiku and Isane.

"Karin-chan? Who are you talking to?" Yuzu asks quietly as she tugs on her sister's sleeve. Karin grins with satisfaction when Rangiku slugs Isshin very quickly to put an end to his ogling.

"So there's one who can't see us?" Sui Fong asks as she moves closer to Yuzu. Isshin clutches his face in his hand. Matsumoto has a strong right arm.

Yuzu can sense Sui Fong's presence and she takes a step back in confusion. Sui Fong looks surprised.

"Is someone there?" Yuzu asks, sticking her arm out, barely missing the stomach of Sui Fong. Karin grabs her arm.

"Yes." Karin tells her and then she looks back up at the women in the room.

"What about you? What was your reaction?" Nemu finally speaks up and she speaks to Ichigo and Rukia.

"We were pleasantly surprised." Rukia answers as Ichigo scowls at the women who have made his life a mess for well over a week.

"Have you discussed having kids?" Yachiru pipes up, causing Ichigo and Rukia to turn red instantly. His father and Karin look at them since they want to know the answer too.

"We haven't discussed it yet," Ichigo answers hastily, staying red.

"You would have cute kids!" Rangiku tells them with a happy chuckle. The other women start nodding.

"You should definitely have kids." Kiyone pipes up smiling hugely.

"Lots and lots of them!" Yachiru adds, causing Isshin to chuckle. It seems he's forgotten his pain. Even Karin has turned pink by now.

"I don't know." Rukia says in a frustrated voice. "I wouldn't mind having kids, would you Ichigo?" She asks. Ichigo's mouth drops open. He cannot believe she just asked that in front of everybody. It's not as though he can dodge the question if she's the one who asked it. Everybody leans in with anticipation as it appears Ichigo is about to speak.

"I wouldn't mind it either," Ichigo finally whispers. He fixes his gaze on the ceiling. _What did I do to deserve this?_

Yuzu laughs and claps her hands at what she just heard.

"I can't wait to be an aunt!" Yuzu says excitedly and a few of the Shinigami in the room smile at that.

"It seems your family is on board. Have you decided where you'll get married?" Nanao asks, enjoying the scene. It's become more and more interesting since the first time she came to interview them.

"They'll get married here in the living world, of course!" Isshin says firmly and a few of the women look at him. Sui Fong stares at him for a long time.

"Who in the hell are you? You are no normal human." Sui Fong says quietly. Everyone in the room with the exception of Yuzu turns to watch the exchange.

"I'm Ichigo's old man." Isshin tells her with a jovial smile. Sui Fong gives him a look of distrust.

"You're more than that." Sui Fong says quietly, but she lets it go. Isshin is surprised at her level of insight.

"When do you plan to see Kuchiki Byakuya next?" Isane asks Ichigo. Everyone nods at that question. Ichigo takes a step backwards.

"I don't know." Ichigo tells them quietly.

"I don't understand why he hasn't come here yet. It's not as though we can go there," Karin says, to nobody in particular. A few of the women trade glances.

"He's a very important person in Soul Society. He's a captain there." Kiyone tells Karin. "Captains always have a ton of work to do and it seems like they're never done."

"Oh," Karin says, not really understanding the explanation. Ichigo and Rukia give each other a glance. They want this to be over with.

"Are you aware that Captain Kuchiki has stipulated that you are to be married in under six months? Do you know why he stated that? Are you pregnant?" Matsumoto asks Rukia, causing them both to blush and gape at her at the same time.

"I am not pregnant!" Rukia protests wide eyed.

"Can you be sure about that?" Nemu asks them in a very serious voice. Rukia and Ichigo blush and avoid meeting anyone's eyes. Rukia hesitates only for a moment.

"Yes," Rukia says, although it's not as strong of a protest as earlier. Even Ichigo notices it.

"Rukia…" Ichigo says, trailing off.

"You two don't waste any time do you?" Karin says as she rolls her eyes. Rukia grabs Ichigo's hand and they run out the front door. Rukia stops outside with Ichigo.

"I'm not pregnant…I'm not!" Rukia says, feeling a bit violated by the constant appearances of Shinigami in the Kurosaki home.

"Even if you were, it wouldn't change anything," Ichigo tells her softly. Rukia smiles and looks up at him.

"You really do want to get married don't you?" Rukia asks him in wonder.

"Of course! Don't you?" Ichigo asks, pinning her with an intense and needy stare.

"Yes." Rukia answers and then throws herself into his arms. They don't go back home until dinner time.

_Five months and ten days later…_

Ichigo stares in amazement at Rukia as she walks down the aisle. She's only showing in her pregnancy a tiny bit, but she still looks as lovely as ever. She was in a wedding dress of ice blue with pearls sewn into it. (It had been a request from Byakuya after he'd learned his sister was pregnant.)

She's only five months pregnant, and it figures, that the day all the women Shinigami made their appearance was the estimated date of conception. Ichigo can't take his eyes off of her, the color more than compliments her luminous eyes and he is glad to be promising to spend the rest of his future, in life and in death with her, the only woman who owns his heart.

Ichigo smiles when she finally reaches him, and he notices that Byakuya actually looks a bit emotional. Rukia raises her eyes to him, and Ichigo gives her a look of total and complete love.

The wedding ceremony is beautiful, but the reception ends up being completely dramatic. A roomful of drunk Shinigami in the living world will always create havoc and drama though. When it comes time for the bride and groom to leave, everyone cheers as Ichigo sweeps Rukia up effortlessly into his arms and smiles as he stares deep into her eyes.

He carries her to a limo which will take them to a fancy hotel where they will spend their wedding night. Tomorrow they fly to Hawaii for their honeymoon.

A collective sigh is heard from the women who watch as they disappear into the limo.

_A love like that is hard to find._


	35. Love Handcuffs

_Love Handcuffs_

When Inoue told Rukia the truth about her feelings for Kurosaki Ichigo, Rukia had looked at her stunned, before admitting to Inoue that she had the exact same feelings for Ichigo.

They hadn't known where to go from there and they had found themselves absentmindedly wandering into Urahara's store. They don't say a whole lot to one another, because neither of them know what to say.

"Kuchiki-san, are you going to tell him how you feel?" Inoue finally asks softly as she studies some of the odd objects in the store.

"I don't know. I really don't know what to do now that I know how you feel. I wish there was a way for us to find out what he wants so that the other could peacefully step aside and still maintain the friendship that we all have." Rukia says slowly. It kills her to think that another girl loves Ichigo, because she loves him with all of her heart.

"He never pays much attention to me," Inoue says in a sad voice.

Rukia blushes. She can't say the same.

"It's not as though he's confessed to me either," Rukia says softly, although she doesn't feel like those words cheer Inoue up at all.

They both jump in shock when Tessai pops up behind them.

"I have the perfect thing for you ladies." He says in a deep conspiratorial voice. Rukia and Inoue exchange glances.

"You do?" Inoue asks him hopefully with a smile. Tessai smiles back in a friendly manner.

"These here are called love handcuffs." Tessai says, pulling a pair of ordinary looking silver handcuffs from behind his back. "Watch!" Tessai quickly handcuffs himself to Inoue before she can protest.

"What are you-" She starts to ask but he interrupts her.

"Now say the magical words! Sun and moon! Heart and rain! Please undo us from this pain!" Tessai calls out and the handcuffs fall magically off of Inoue's and Tessai's wrists and clank to the floor.

"Ooh!" Rukia says, impressed.

"They only come off if the two people captured are not in love with each other." Tessai says with a smile. Inoue and Rukia grin and nod at each other.

Neither one of them think to ask him how you take them off if both people are in love with one another. They decide to go halves on buying the cuffs and they walk to Ichigo's house together, with the purchase hanging out of Inoue's hands in a small bag.

"Who should go first?" Inoue asks Rukia very nervously. Rukia turns white.

"You should go first." Rukia says immediately.

"How are we going to get him to agree to let us both handcuff ourselves to him?" Inoue asks next. Rukia grins at her.

"Well if he stays attached to you, it won't much matter will it? If he doesn't stay attached to you, I can force him to do the same trick with me." Rukia assures her. Inoue nods. They stay silent the rest of the way.

When they get to Ichigo's house, both girls are relieved to find that his family is not around. Rukia and Inoue let themselves in the door and walk up to Ichigo's room. He is laying down and reading a manga when the girls enter and he looks up at them with a questioning glance. Rukia doesn't waste any time.

"Ichigo! Check out this magic trick!" Rukia says excitedly, and Inoue pulls the handcuffs from the bag. She walks over to him and Ichigo backs away a tiny bit.

"Let her cuff you." Rukia orders him, and Ichigo doesn't move as Inoue cuffs herself to him with the handcuffs. She takes a few deep breaths.

"Sun and moon! Heart and rain! Please undo us from this pain!" Inoue calls out and the handcuffs drop to the floor. Ichigo's eyes widen at the trick.

"That was cool." Ichigo says with a small smile. "Where did you get those?" Ichigo asks, but Inoue's face is down, and she isn't answering him.

Rukia walks over and quickly grabs the cuffs. Before Ichigo knows what's happened, Rukia cuffs herself to him next.

"Rukia, what are you-" Ichigo starts to ask, but then he hears a sniffle come from Inoue. He glances at her in concern, but Rukia isn't paying attention to her. She'll cry with Inoue together if the cuffs fall off of her and Ichigo too.

"Sun and moon! Heart and rain! Please undo us from this pain!" Rukia says loudly, but nothing happens. Rukia's eyes widen at this. "They didn't come off!" Rukia whispers.

Inoue raises her face, and even though the tears are evident, she looks wide eyed at the pair who are cuffed.

Ichigo is glaring at Rukia for cuffing him a second time when he'd already been shown the trick once, and he's still glaring at her because they're both still cuffed.

"What now?" Rukia asks in confusion. Inoue's eyes widen and she stops being upset and starts to get concerned as she stares at the cuffs that bind them together.

"We never asked!" Inoue answers her in a tight voice. Rukia's mouth drops open.

"You're right!" Rukia says in a near wail.

"Try it again," Inoue requests softly. Rukia nods.

"Sun and moon! Heart and rain! Please undo us from this pain!" Rukia says a bit more desperately. She waits to see if it has any effect. "Shit!" Rukia says a moment later when she and Ichigo are still attached to one another.

"You two want to tell me what's going on?" Ichigo asks in a very annoyed voice. He looks back and forth between them as they both turn crimson.

"I have to go!" Inoue says, taking advantage of the fact that she's not cuffed to anybody.

"Inoue! Wait!" Rukia shouts, but Inoue hurries down the stairs. Rukia tries to follow but Ichigo digs his heels in.

"I asked you a question," Ichigo says in a low voice right next to her ear. Rukia blushes again.

"Ahem. You're right. You did." Rukia agrees. She doesn't add anything more though and Ichigo looks at her and then back at the cuffs again.

"Rukia! How the hell do we get out of these things?" Ichigo asks, having lost all of his patience.

"Um, well you see…I don't know." Rukia says very softly. Ichigo bends down.

"What? Care to say that again a little bit louder?" Ichigo asks her figuring she has a key in her pocket or something.

"I don't know. The magic phrase was supposed to work. Since it didn't, I have no clue how to get the cuffs undone." Rukia explains weakly.

"You're shitting me." Ichigo says as all of the blood drains from his face. He starts contemplating life cuffed to Rukia and he slowly starts to turn red.

"I really don't know." Rukia says pitifully. She pulls him over to the bed so that she can sit. "Let me think a minute." She says sadly. Ichigo glances warily at her and then back at the cuffs.

"Are you sure there wasn't a key that didn't come with these?" Ichigo asks, even as he realizes there would be nowhere to put the key even if you had one.

"No key." Rukia says absentmindedly.

"Where in the hell did you two get these things?" Ichigo asks her next. He is very aware of it when she blushes and turns her face away.

"Urahara's shop." Rukia answers haltingly. Ichigo grins at her.

"Why didn't you say so?! All we have to do is go there, and Urahara is sure to be able to get us undone." Ichigo exclaims.

"I'd rather not do that." Rukia says blushing harder.

She can't even begin to imagine the words that might come out of his mouth when he saw the predicament that they were in, especially since he probably knew the secret of the handcuffs. If not him then Tessai for sure.

"Would you rather just stay handcuffed to me?" Ichigo asks her pointedly.

His eyes widen at the blush that spreads all the way down to her neck.

"I didn't say that," Rukia protests.

"I don't even see a keyhole in these things." Ichigo says as he studies the cuffs. "I know! I'll use my substitute Shinigami license and I'll pop out of my body!" Ichigo declares with a smile.

He does just that, but instead of only popping himself out, he ends up popping Rukia out of her gigai and they both stare in surprise that the handcuffs have the same binding issue in spirit form.

"Shit." Rukia mutters, feeling dread rise up in her stomach.

"How in the hell are we supposed to fight hollows like this?" Ichigo asks her in disbelief. "We need to get these things off now!" Ichigo tells her in a very serious voice.

He tries to cut the chain that links their wrists but it doesn't work.

"I know." Rukia agrees in a whisper. She still doesn't want Ichigo knowing exactly what these cuffs being stuck like this meant.

"So lets go see Urahara!" Ichigo says frantically. Rukia looks at him pointedly.

"So you want to walk down the street in broad daylight handcuffed to me?" Rukia asks him with a raised eyebrow. The blood drains from his face.

"No! I mean…there has to be a way to hide this, right?" Ichigo asks as he stares at the cuffs.

"Short of wrapping a piece of clothing over our wrists and acting like we're holding hands, I don't see a solution." Rukia says in a defeated voice.

"How long do you really think we can stay like this?" Ichigo asks her in a very panicked voice.

Rukia blushes at that thought. It's making her tingle all over at the thrill of being stuck to him like this, and if they had to take a bath…she blushes harder.

"I don't know," Rukia whispers, refusing to meet his piercing gaze.

They sit there, staring at the cuffs, feeling sorry for themselves when they hear the door open and his father's voice booming as he arrives home. Ichigo and Rukia trade horrified looks with one another.

"My dad cannot see us like this! He'd never let me hear the end of it!" Ichigo says with horror clearly showing in his eyes.

Rukia blushes at the thought of the things that might come out of his father's mouth, Ichigo grabs a jacket and quickly wraps it around their wrists. Her idea will have to do. He pulls her to the window ledge and they hop out.

Ichigo and Rukia hurry to the store, and it seems nobody has noticed their predicament, and so Ichigo cheers up quite a bit as they are approaching the store. Rukia just feels even more dread than before.

It's not like she can escape Ichigo as he hears the explanation of the handcuffs.

When Ichigo and Rukia make it to the front door of the store, they both stare shocked at the sign that is on the front door.

_URAHARA STORE CLOSED:_

_Due to a family emergency, the Urahara Store will be closed for several days. We're sorry for any inconvenience this may cause!_

_The Urahara Store Management_

"Fuck!" Ichigo's voice is loud next to her and Rukia lets out a tiny breath of relief, which Ichigo notices. He glares at her.

"I wonder when he'll come back." Rukia says thoughtfully. She is carefully avoiding his suspicious stare.

"Fuck!" Ichigo shouts angrily again. Rukia can't help it, she starts to laugh.

Ichigo stares at her as if she's lost her mind when she clutches her stomach with her free hand and just laughs really hard. Ichigo sighs and just keeps glaring as he waits for her to gain her normal composure.

"I'm sorry, but if you think about it, this is pretty damned funny!" Rukia tells him as she struggles to regain her breath.

Ichigo starts to contemplate what it will mean to be cuffed to her like this, and he can feel his heart pounding and not in a good way.

"I don't see anything funny about this at all!" Ichigo growls as she finally manages to completely regain control of herself.

"I wonder what your father will say," Rukia says, causing Ichigo to turn bright red.

"Fuck!" Ichigo says again. It seems to be the only appropriate response to this particular situation. Rukia smothers a giggle.

"We shouldn't stand around outside like this more than we actually have to, come on." Ichigo starts to pull her back towards his house at a fast pace. Rukia glares at his back.

_I don't think so._

Rukia balks and Ichigo realizes he's pulling along dead weight and he stops to glare at her, but she's already glaring at him furiously.

"Have you forgotten that we're attached? My stride isn't as long as yours, be considerate!" Rukia snaps before she takes the step next to him. Ichigo growls in frustration.

"I just don't want anybody to see us like this," Ichigo admits, red faced.

Rukia sighs in frustration. She carefully studies his face. He really is good at hiding how he truly feels. She can't imagine how he'll react when he finds out why the handcuffs aren't coming off. She smiles a tiny bit at the picture it creates in her mind.

"Maybe we should move closer together. Then our hands wouldn't be so conspicuous." Rukia suggests innocently, deciding to make the best of the predicament.

Ichigo blushes as he tries to decide whether or not it's a good suggestion. Rukia suddenly crowds into his side and Ichigo bites his lip. He doesn't move away.

"How are we going to explain this to my father?" Ichigo asks in a voice filled with despair. Rukia smiles.

"I say we just go inside and we don't hide it." Rukia says in a calm voice. Ichigo starts shaking his head.

"We can't do that! You don't understand, my dad is a nutcase!" Ichigo says, pleading with her to understand reason.

"If we act like it doesn't bother us, he'll be the one who's speechless." Rukia says, hoping her theory is right. Ichigo just gapes at her.

How could this situation not bother them? How is he supposed to act like it's no big deal to be stuck this close to her?

"He'll find a way to make it bother us," Ichigo says, pink faced. He knows all his father has to do is mention what they're going to do the first time one of them has to use the bathroom and Ichigo will instantly be bothered by this situation.

Neither one of them can have any privacy as long as they're attached this way. He is suddenly glad that he took care of his major bathroom needs today before he got cuffed to her. He won't need to bathe today.

He's pretty sure he'll be able to use the restroom with more comfort than she'll be able to. Ichigo suddenly remembers that they'll be stuck like this when it's time to go to bed too. His face is flaming red.

Rukia watches as an array of emotions briefly appear on his face. He looks embarrassed, worried, nervous, and then completely mortified. She wonders what he is thinking about. She looks at their connected wrists and she smiles a bit.

They're only like this because they love each other. She decides she won't mind one bit being stuck to him, since she can handle it knowing he loves her. Not that she'll admit that out loud of course, but Rukia isn't exactly in the habit of lying to herself about how she feels, even if she hides the truth from others.

Ichigo clearly gets more nervous the closer they get to his house. He does think they're damned lucky that they didn't run into anybody they know.

Ichigo feels Rukia's arm jerk suddenly and he follows her gaze. He thinks he was feeling grateful a moment too soon. There at the end of Rukia's gaze about thirty meters away stands Ishida, Sado, and Inoue, all looking like they're trying not to laugh at the predicament that they're in. Rukia feels a wave of worry rush through her.

"Just keep going!" Rukia tells him as she tries to drag him towards his house.

Ichigo doesn't know which is worse, having to deal with their friends or having to deal with his family. He lets her drag him towards the house, certain he'll regret it. He notices that Ishida is doubled over in laughter, and Sado looks clearly amused, even from far away.

"I _told_ you!" Inoue's voice is heard by both Ichigo and Rukia.

"She told them? Who else did she tell?" Ichigo asks wide eyed, feeling his heart slam in his chest from the dread that is filling his body from head to toe.

"Hell if I know!" Rukia answers back. Ichigo was so busy wondering who all knew, that he forgot to drag Rukia up to the second floor window.

Instead, she just kicked off her shoes and entered his house. Ichigo barely gets his own shoes off in time as Rukia drags him into his own house.

When they close the door, the rest of his family, all sitting on the couch looked up, and didn't immediately notice the cuffs due to the jacket. They did however notice the way they appeared to be holding hands.

"You finally made a move! I can't believe my son will finally become a man!" Isshin yells at the top of his lungs. Ichigo races forward to punch his dad, momentarily forgetting he has a girl attached to him.

His sisters watch wide eyed as Ichigo drags Rukia forward with him to retaliate. Ichigo punches his father and Rukia falls into the couch from the momentum. His sisters stare transfixed as Rukia glares up at Ichigo and he tries to take a step back from her only to drag her back with him.

Luckily she'd managed to gain her balance as she'd glared and she'd been ready for him to move again. Ichigo frowns as he realizes he can't get away from her even when she's angry.

"Why don't you let go of her?" Karin asks logically.

Ichigo blushes and his family all stare back and forth between the two. Rukia smiles at them.

"He's not holding onto me." She informs them. She unwinds the jacket to reveal the handcuffs. Isshin takes one looks and falls back onto the couch in loud laughter.

His sisters look in interest at the pair handcuffed together.

"How on earth did you manage to get in that situation?" Karin asks, flabbergasted. Ichigo throws a very terrible glare at Rukia who looks at the family sheepishly.

"They were supposed to come off." Rukia says in explanation. Isshin manages to stop laughing long enough to comment.

"They're not off though," Isshin points out before he goes back to his laugh fest.

"Shut up!" Ichigo shouts at his father. Yuzu leans gets up on her knees on the couch and leans over to study the handcuffs.

"There are no keyholes!" Yuzu says suddenly. Karin looks too.

"You're right!" Karin says as she looks at them dubiously.

"This ought to make for some interesting sleeping arrangements," Isshin says while laughing. Ichigo and Rukia blush at that comment.

"Can't you rip the chains apart?" Karin asks Ichigo, wondering if he's even tried. Ichigo looks embarrassed.

"I didn't even think about that." Ichigo admits. He attempts in front of everyone to force the two cuffs to separate using brute strength but the handcuffs hold against his attempts.

Isshin knows better. He just keeps laughing.

"Rukia-chan, I hope you know what you're getting into," Isshin says with a knowing look in his eyes.

Rukia gets the sensation he is aware of the secret behind the handcuffs. Rukia stares at him as he laughs some more. He seems to be really amused.

"How will you bathe?" Yuzu asks with wide eyes. Karin guffaws, and the couple in front of them blush furiously.

"I already did today." Ichigo grumbles looking away from them. Isshin starts laughing harder.

"My stomach is starting to hurt," Isshin whines.

"Excuse us." Rukia says as politely as she can to his family. She glares at Ichigo. "Come here." She tells him.

She walks him into the kitchen, and she doesn't notice his father tiptoed after them and is listening out of view to their conversation. Isshin smothers a laugh at their conversation.

"What, Rukia?" Ichigo asks in a frustrated voice when she stops in the kitchen.

"I haven't bathed yet today." Rukia says in a small voice. Ichigo gulps and stares at her. "I like to bathe before I go to bed."

"What are you trying to say?" Ichigo asks nervously.

"How is this going to work?" Rukia asks in a worried voice as she eyes their cuffed wrists.

"It was your bright idea to put these damned things on us. I'm just grateful this didn't happen when Inoue cuffed me to her with these things." Ichigo tells her, realizing he's lucky he ended up with Rukia attached to him.

When his father walks in, they both jump.

"There's only one solution to this problem!" Isshin announces, causing Rukia to blush. Ichigo glares at his father suspiciously.

"You'd better be serious!" Ichigo warns him. Isshin nods and smiles.

"You'll have to bathe together!" Isshin tells them. Ichigo's eyes get so big they threaten to pop out of his head. Rukia's face turns completely white.

"What?" Rukia asks, even as an exciting tingle works its way through her body.

"There's no other solution! After all, you'll both want to be nice and clean when you sleep together tonight won't you?" Isshin asks them with a grin that shows his amusement. Ichigo growls at his father's cavalier attitude.

"How can you even say that?" Ichigo asks in mortification.

"I'm right though, aren't I?" Isshin asks Rukia. She averts her gaze and concentrates on the ceiling.

The idea of Rukia in the tub naked with him is enough to make Ichigo feel a reaction in his mini Ichigo. He lets out a loud breath in frustration and hopes his condition isn't noticeable.

"Shut up!" Ichigo yells at his father. He drags Rukia upstairs and pulls her into his room. "I can't even believe this is happening!" Ichigo says with a scowl. Their thoughts are both interrupted by her spirit phone indicating a hollow is nearby.

"We have to go!" Rukia tells him. Ichigo looks at their wrists.

"Oh yeah, this is the _perfect way_ to greet the hollow, he'll die from laughter before we even have the chance to kill him!" Ichigo howls angrily.

Rukia smacks him in the head with her handcuffed hand, and his own hand smacks his head after hers does. He shoots an irritated glare at her.

"We have to go!" Rukia tells him. Ichigo sighs and smacks his chest with his substitute license, popping them both out into spirit form. Ichigo looks at her and then he grabs her cuffed hand with his cuffed hand and flash steps towards the hollows location.

When they're on their way back, Ichigo is in a really foul mood. The damned hollow had laughed, ridiculously hard, and it had called them stupid fools, and it hadn't taken them seriously at all.

Rukia had used her second dance to kill the hollow since it was the most efficient sword attack while attached to Ichigo. So not only had Ichigo been forced to stand and watch her kill the hollow, he'd been laughed at too.

"I really do need a bath," Rukia tells him in a nervous voice. Ichigo glares at her.

"No." Ichigo says in a resolute voice. He's answered with a slap up against his head.

"Yes!" Rukia insists.

It's embarrassing to her too, but she won't be able to sleep if she tries to go to bed without bathing. "I can't sleep if I don't bathe!" Rukia tells him. Ichigo glares at her with his face slowly turning red.

"How can you when we're like this?" Ichigo asks with panic in his voice, which has been a common occurrence today.

"You can close your eyes." Rukia tells him, "I will be bathing before we go to bed tonight though." She tells him in a voice that leave no room for his arguments. Ichigo closes his eyes in frustration.

"I can't believe you're going to be so stubborn about this!" Ichigo tells her in disbelief.

"Easy for you to say. You already bathed today." Rukia tells him with a sigh.

She knows he loves her, and so she can deal with this. She stares at him as she waits for him to open his eyes. When he does, she smiles.

"You seem to be much calmer about this." Ichigo tells her. Rukia grins.

"Not much we can do about it, is there? Come on, lets get it over with." Rukia tells him, as she pulls him towards his house.

They hop in through the window and get back into the bodies they left laying on his floor. Rukia immediately pulls him to the closet to get a towel.

She then tries to figure out how she'll get herself covered after her bath. She doesn't know how it will be possible attached to Ichigo like this. She pulls him into the bathroom with the towel after she realizes she'll have to sleep covered in the towel.

When she shuts the door, Ichigo turns bright red. He watches as she hangs up the towel and then turns on the water. She plugs up the drain and adds bubble bath to the water.

Rukia glances at Ichigo who is standing next to her with his eyes closed. She smiles and she uses her free hand to shimmy down her underwear underneath her dress. When she gets them down, she steps out of them and then she rips the sleeve of her dress on the cuffed arm.

She feels the dress fall to the floor and she rips her bra off the same way. She hurries to sit in the tub and she leaves her cuffed wrist on the edge of the tub. Ichigo sits down next to the tub, not looking at her.

She lets out a loud relieved sigh when she's sitting and the bubbles are hiding what is beneath the surface of the water. She's pretty sure Ichigo had respected her and not looked, although she's not a hundred percent sure that he didn't peek.

Ichigo can feel the heat radiating off of his face. When Rukia had been busy ripping off her bra, he'd glanced and caught a spectacular glance of her completely naked body. Once again his body reacted to her. He shakes his head as he hears the water moving around in the tub. He can hardly believe she's bathing with him right here.

They both jump when his father pounds on the door.

"Are you two in the bath?" He yells from the other side of the door.

"No! Go away!" Ichigo yells back. "Only Rukia is in the tub!"

"You're no fun!" Isshin yells back before walking away. Ichigo glances at Rukia's face and she too is blushing. She sees him look at her and she uses her finger to splash water in his face.

"If you want to get in, you can." Rukia tells him in a very quiet voice. Ichigo sputters in response.

"Don't joke with me." He mutters.

"It wouldn't bother me." Rukia tells him softly. Ichigo's eyes widen. The tub isn't that large…if he got in with her, their bodies would be touching, and he flushes in embarrassment.

"Shut up," Ichigo tells her quietly, although his heart is racing at the fact that she just offered for him to join her.

He keeps his gaze averted from her for the rest of her bath.

"Hand me the towel please," Rukia asks him, and Ichigo does so.

Rukia awkwardly stands and manages to get the towel wrapped around her. Ichigo realizes she won't be able to put on a shirt without it being ripped up the arm and he wonders how in the hell they're going to get through this and still be sane when it's all over with. She grabs up her dirty clothes to take back to his room.

They walk into the bedroom together and Rukia grabs some fresh underwear. She pulls them on, using both hands, and Ichigo blushes while she does. She rewraps the towel around her front and looks at him expectantly.

"What?" Ichigo asks her in a nervous voice.

"What should we do now?" She asks in a calm voice.

"How in the hell should I know?" Ichigo asks her in a very perplexed voice.

He tries to think of an activity that can occupy them until bedtime. He can't think of anything. She pulls him over to the bed to sit down.

"We could try and read," Rukia suggests, and Ichigo shakes his head.

He eyes her surreptitiously in her towel and he wonders how in the hell they're going to get through this situation.

"I don't feel like reading," Ichigo mutters.

They jump when they hear a knock at the door. Rukia clutches the towel more tightly against herself as Yuzu walks in with a plate of dinner for them. Rukia blushes as she feels a bit uncomfortable in a towel and underwear.

"Here's dinner for you." Yuzu says with a smile before setting the plate on Ichigo's desk and running out.

"This is so embarrassing," Ichigo moans as Rukia stands.

He's forced to stand with her as she sits at his desk and starts eating dinner. Ichigo sighs. When she finishes, she stands so that he can sit at the desk and eat. Rukia considers the night ahead of them.

When it finally comes time to lay down for bed, they blush as they get in side by side, making every effort not to touch. Rukia falls asleep first, with her head turned away from Ichigo and she's on her back.

Ichigo sighs. He can't sleep on his back like this. He likes to fall asleep on his side. He pokes her arm but she doesn't stir. Ichigo sighs as he gathers her into his arms and rolls to his side. He doesn't grope her, he just wraps his arm around her.

During the night however, Rukia's towel works its way down and they end up holding hands on the cuffed wrists side. In his sleep, he starts to caress her back with his free hand, and she wakes up to find herself smashed up against his chest, holding his hand with his other hand stroking her. She sucks in a quick breath and she works her free hand under his shirt and rests it on his washboard stomach.

She falls back asleep and doesn't wake up until she hears Ichigo gasping in shock. Rukia wakes up to find the towel is completely off of her and when Ichigo had woken up, he'd tried to pull away from her only to reveal her chest. Rukia pulls the blanket up quickly and then glances at Ichigo with a red face. His face is the exact same shade.

Ichigo and Rukia end up staying cuffed together for three days. They end up dealing with a lot of embarrassment, but Yuzu had taken pity on Rukia's plight and had altered a dress of Rukia's by sewing a zipper onto the sleeve so that she could at least be clothed during the day. Ichigo spent the second two days being handcuffed with no shirt on. Rukia thought that was definitely a silver lining in their situation.

Finally on the third day, Isshin took pity on them. Urahara still hadn't come back and these kids weren't going to figure it out without being told.

He called them into the family room and asked them to sit down. They did sit down and Isshin had given them a very serious look.

"Ichigo, how do you feel about Rukia-chan?" Isshin asks his son softly, earning a blush and a glare at the same time.

"Shut up old man!" Ichigo snaps.

His temper is short. There had been more than enough embarrassing situations in the past three days. He doesn't understand why his father wants to make it worse. Ichigo remembers the bathroom this morning. Rukia had sat on the floor next to him, holding her nose and closing her eyes while muttering loudly. She had earplugs in too. It was all they could do to give each other privacy and it was damned humiliating.

"Ichigo, you want those handcuffs off don't you?" Isshin asks with a serious look. Rukia's eyes light up.

"You know something about them don't you?" Rukia asks, she had suspected that he did.

"I myself was once trapped in handcuffs exactly like those ones once." Isshin says slowly to Ichigo, causing his son to stare at him in surprise.

"Why didn't you tell us that three days ago?" Ichigo shouts angrily.

"You weren't ready to hear this, and I truly don't think you're ready to hear it now, but the two of you may go insane before you're ever ready and so I've made the decision to tell you now." Isshin tells Ichigo.

"Bullshit. You just loved having us cuffed like this the past few days. It was one huge joke to you." Ichigo mutters, earning a smack from Rukia. Ichigo glares at her too.

"I'm interested in what he has to say." Rukia tells him as she leans forward a bit.

"You were trapped, you say? Who were you cuffed to?" Rukia asks him softly. Isshin grins at her.

"It is as you suspect. I was cuffed to Masaki!" Isshin reveals, causing Ichigo's mouth to drop open.

"Seriously?" Ichigo asks his father in a shocked voice. Isshin nods.

"There should have been a magic phrase that came with the cuffs." Isshin says to them. Rukia nods.

"I tried it twice but it didn't work." Rukia explains.

"Try it again, please." Isshin wants to see with his own eyes whether or not the spell works.

"Sun and moon! Heart and rain! Please undo us from this pain!" Rukia calls out loudly. The cuffs don't budge.

"It's as I suspected. You'll have to do it the hard way." Isshin says grinning. Ichigo raises his eyebrows.

"The hard way?" Ichigo echoes. His father pins him with an intense stare.

"How do you feel about Rukia-chan?" Isshin asks him again. Ichigo blushes.

"What does that have to do with the handcuffs?" Ichigo demands.

"Trust me." Isshin tells him seriously. "How do you feel about her?"

Ichigo blushes as he glances at Rukia. He really doesn't want his confession to be like this.

"I'm sick of your games old man!" Ichigo says in protest. He starts to get up but Rukia pinches his arm very hard in order to get him to stop.

"Why won't you answer the question?" Rukia asks him softly and he looks down into her hurt expression and he wants to swear.

He leans down to whisper in her ear.

"I promise to answer it when we're alone." Ichigo tells her very quietly. Rukia nods.

Isshin grins as he hears them run up the stairs. They've sure gotten used to walking and running together at the right pace the past few days. He suspects they probably didn't have too much trouble with that in the first place.

Up in Ichigo's room, he looks at Rukia in a bit of a panic as he knows he has to keep his end of the deal. He pulls her over to the bed to sit down.

"Well?" Rukia asks impatiently.

"Hush for a second." Ichigo snaps at her as he closes his eyes to gather his thoughts.

Rukia can tell he's trying to figure out the right way to confess and she holds her breath. Their cuffed wrists are proof enough of his feelings.

"Okay, I'll wait patiently." Rukia says as she watches him think.

She smiles when he finally opens his eyes to meet hers, and he gives her a very thorough stare that makes her heart tingle.

"If you want to know what you mean to me then I easily say you mean the world to me. If you want to know if I love you then I would say I love you very much, but it feels like those words don't do my feelings true justice. I don't think a word exists for how strongly I feel about you. I treasure you above all else." Ichigo whispers achingly. Rukia feels tears forming in her eyes at his touching words.

"I love you so much!" Rukia answers in return. Ichigo leans down to kiss her and they open their eyes in mid-kiss when the cuffs come undone and hit the bed and then clank to the ground.

"Seriously?" Ichigo whispers in shock. Rukia smiles back at him.

"It seems you won't be forced to drag me everywhere you go now," Rukia tells him with a happy sigh from their kissing.

"But you'll still be sleeping with me." Ichigo tells her with a kiss_._

_A Few Days Later…_

Urahara and Tessai are relieved that Ichigo finally left. He had bloodied both of their noses for leaving town and not explaining Rukia's purchase fully to her before letting her put those damned cuffs on him.

Urahara had unwisely commented that it looked like it had turned out for the best and Ichigo had elbowed him in his broken and bloody nose after that comment. Ichigo's last words before he had stormed out, ring in his ear. It had been a mouthful, even for Ichigo.

_Just because we're together doesn't mean it was alright for you to do that! We didn't even have privacy to use the bathroom! Do you have any idea how humiliating that was? Even worse, I come to find out that's how my parents confessed to each other! How could you make it so that me and my dad have that in common?! For two generations, Kurosaki men will have fallen in love with and married the woman they were cuffed to! That is not a cool tradition! Quit pulling shit like that!_

"He's one violent kid." Tessai says with a gasp. Urahara thinks of the many times Rukia has smacked him around.

"They're perfect for each other." Urahara had stated before whining about the pain.

"He brought up marriage." Tessai says with a grin. Urahara smiles back at him.

"Like father, like son. With those two, it's terrifying how many similarities there are." Urahara shakes his head.

"I think it was worth it to get them together." Tessai says, smiling through his pain.

"Me too." Urahara says with a smile. They deserved to find happiness, and Urahara was glad that they had found it in a roundabout way through him.

_They'll be happy together, and they deserve that._


	36. Ichigo Vs Rukia

_Ichigo Vs Rukia_

"I'm sorry, I just don't feel like you could win against me if I were really trying to win," Ichigo says to Rukia. He's fascinated by the way her eyes turn into an angry ocean blue color at his words.

"Care to wager on that?" Rukia asks him softly. Ichigo wonders what game she's trying to pull.

"What do you mean? It's not like we would ever have a real reason to battle." Ichigo objects as he realizes he has really infuriated her.

"I can think of a real good reason for us to battle. For the purposes of our wager." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo's eyes widen.

"What kind of wager are you talking about?" Ichigo asks warily.

"Whoever loses has to be subordinate for the day." Rukia answers instantly. "Not slave, that would be going too far, but whoever loses will have to treat the other like they're their captain for the day. Do you accept these terms?" Rukia asks with a faint smile. She knows how powerful he is, but she also knows he's never gotten a good look at her sword's first dance, thanks to Chappy.

Ichigo appears to consider it for a moment. He would hate it if he had to act like her subordinate, on the other hand, he wouldn't mind having her act as the subordinate for the day. She's always bossing him around, and if for one day he can be the faux captain of the pair, then he'll jump at that opportunity.

"Fine." Ichigo agrees and Rukia smiles.

"Get in your fighting stance, we'll start on three." Rukia tells him. Ichigo nods and he yanks his very intimidating Zangetsu off of his back and Rukia pulls her sword from the side.

"I'm ready. You can release your sword beforehand if you want." Ichigo tells her. Rukia scoffs.

"Don't give me any advantages, you forget that I'm proficient in all aspects of being a Shinigami. Whoever gives in first or passes out first or can't stand first is the loser!" Rukia sings as she stares at him.

"Got it." Ichigo replies. He waits for her to count it down.

"One...two...three!" Rukia cries out three and immediately they start flash stepping all around each other. Rukia observes his movements and then predicts where he'll be and she uses a binding spell to stop him in mid step. Ichigo gets a very surprised look on his face when he is stuck there and he watches her release her sword.

He can't take his eyes off of her, she is absolutely breathtaking to watch. As her sword starts turning completely white, he realizes he has to get out of the binding spell, and he forces it to disintegrate by sheer will as she faces him in all of her beauty and glory with her released white sword.

"Wow," Ichigo has never faced her as an opponent before and she is doing a good job of making him feel uneasy. She doesn't look nervous or intimidated and to him, that's enough to make him cautious at the very least.

"What are you staring at?" Rukia shouts, and then she disappears. She circles around Ichigo quickly and winds up in his blind spot. Ichigo takes a moment to notice where she popped up and that's when Rukia gives him a taste of her first dance.

Ichigo's eyes widen to unnatural proportions as he watches the ice form around his legs at a super fast speed. He sees Rukia's smug smile as the ice keeps moving upwards and Ichigo realizes he's good and caught. Before her ice can get to his arms though, Ichigo stops it with one word.

"Bankai!" Ichigo yells out. The exploding reiatsu around him blows the ice away completely and Ichigo gives her a little glare. "You sneaky little bitch!" Ichigo exclaims, unable to believe the power she'd displayed. He had known the instant he felt that ice that his Getsuga Tenshou would be useless as long as he was only in shikai.

"You really shouldn't underestimate me." Rukia binds him still again, and then she binds him with a much higher level of binding spell. Ichigo's face turns mad with anger when he can't get loose. Rukia smiles victoriously and walks right up to him as he's held still by her spell.

"Damn it!" Ichigo yells, unable to believe he's just lost.

"Submit to me or else," Rukia threatens once she's standing right in front of him. She holds the tip of her sword to his neck. Ichigo lets out a defeated sigh. She certainly got him alright.

"Fine...Captain." Ichigo says, blushing at calling her by that title. Rukia grins.

"You give up, right?" Rukia wants to be sure that he's not trying to pull a stunt.

"You got me. I give up." Ichigo says through gritted teeth. Rukia doesn't unbind him. Instead, she walks right up to him as he's held still and she places a very soft kiss on his cheek. Ichigo's eyes widen in shock.

"Thanks for playing, there's your consolation prize." Rukia says with a grin. Ichigo glares at her.

"That was a sucky prize. The least you could have done is kiss me on the lips." Ichigo bluffs. He just wants to see her blush in embarrassment, since he's embarrassed that he lost. He is speechless when she leans forward a second time and brushes her lips against his, with her face pink. When she pulls away she doesn't meet his gaze but she does undo the spell that binds him.

Ichigo touches his lips with his right index finger and stares at her in shock. She's not looking so he allows himself to stare at her openly as he cannot believe what she just did.

"Why did you do that?" Ichigo asks softly. Rukia looks at him with surprise.

"Didn't you say you wanted me to?" She asks him as she blushes a little harder.

"I didn't think you'd actually do it," Ichigo whispers and he feels his own face heat up too. He's dying of embarrassment at what just happened. That was his first kiss! He doesn't count the kisses Kon has had in his body. What was worse though was that he hadn't wanted her to pull away. Ichigo averts his face at that realization.

"I couldn't stop myself after you requested it," Rukia whispers back, feeling just as mortified as he appears to be feeling. Ichigo responds without even thinking.

"Then kiss me again now that I'm not bound and I can reciprocate...Captain." Ichigo tells her softly. Rukia feels her heart pounding wildly in her chest as she steps towards him again. When he said he'd reciprocate, her feet had moved instinctively. She stares up into his eyes as she sets one hand on his chest.

"Ichigo," Rukia whispers and Ichigo leans down to kiss her. She throws her arms around his neck and they both kiss each other with a hot passion that makes them both unable to stay still. Rukia sucks in a quick breath as his hands settle on the small of her back and he kisses her without holding back. Rukia's eyes open for a second when she feels his tongue run over her lips and she parts them instinctively. Ichigo takes the opportunity to deepen it into a completely passionate kiss.

When they finally pull away from each other, they just stare into each other's eyes.

"I liked that." Ichigo tells her softly, and Rukia feels like she might explode from happiness.

"Me too." Rukia whispers. She grabs his hand and they head for his house. Ichigo glances at her.

"I want you." Ichigo whispers it so softly he doesn't think it's possible that she heard him, but she did.

"I've wanted you for the longest time," Rukia admits, and she feels him squeeze her hand.

"Why aren't we together then?" Ichigo asks her with confusion in his eyes.

"We are together. We always are." Rukia objects. and Ichigo stops walking and tightens his hold on her hand.

"No I don't mean like that. I mean really together. A true commitment." Ichigo whispers feeling like he never wants another man to experience the pleasure that he just had at kissing her lips.

"What, you mean like marriage?" Rukia asks in confusion. Ichigo stares into her eyes, and he surprises her with his level of intensity.

"I want that more than anything," Ichigo admits to her, causing her eyes to go round and big in shock.

"No way," Rukia says, disbelieving. "You've never acted like you wanted that with me." Rukia tells him, not able to believe they're having this conversation.

"When didn't I act like it? When I came to save your life? When I try to protect you? When I went to lengths unheard of, all for you? How can you say I never acted like it? You're the one who never analyzed my actions!" Ichigo tells her tersely.

"Really?" Rukia whispers, feeling a level of happiness she had never known before. Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"Yes, really! That's why I want to be with you and only you for as long as I...exist." Ichigo says lamely, realizing he would want to be with her always, whether he was alive or dead. Rukia is horrified to feel her eyes well up with tears at his words, she doesn't want to start crying.

"I want that too…more than anything," Rukia says in a low sultry voice. Ichigo crushes her to his chest. Rukia enjoys the sound of his heart beating into her ear.

"Thank you, Rukia." Ichigo whispers as he closes his eyes and holds her as close as he possibly can.

"Don't thank me, just love me." Rukia whispers back. Ichigo squeezes her a little tighter. He doesn't even want to think about how unhappy his life was before she came and made life beautiful again.

"I could never stop." Ichigo tells her before pulling her in for another kiss. Rukia kisses him back with as much enthusiasm as she possibly can.

"Lets go home." Rukia says softly against his lips.

"Sure thing, Captain." Ichigo says, throwing her a sexy grin. Rukia lays her head against his shoulder. It feels like she's won more than one battle tonight, and she's never felt more wonderful than she can ever remember being in her life. She smiles in complete happiness.

_Being in love and being loved is more beautiful than I even dreamed._


	37. As Requested: Ichigo Vs Rukia 2

**A/N-I was requested to do an alternate ending to the last chapter, however, I didn't want any of the readers to feel like they were reading the exact same beginning, and so this chapter is dedicated to the reader who requested an alternate ending…enjoy!**

As Requested: Ichigo Vs Rukia 2

"Rukia, I want a rematch. All you've done is sing about how you beat me." Ichigo complains and Rukia throws him a victorious smile.

"No, that's not what got me on your case, it was how you acted like I could never beat you as long as you were trying." Rukia objects.

"So you won't give me a rematch?" Ichigo asks, in a bit of surprise.

"We're dating now. Do you really want to battle your girlfriend?" Rukia asks as she places her hands on her hips. Ichigo blushes.

"It's not a battle to the death, you know." Ichigo says in a low voice. Rukia smiles. Of course she'll give him a rematch, but she's going to tease him while she can.

"It's not healthy for couples to be violent with one another," Rukia tells him in a low voice. Ichigo scoffs.

"You're really not one to talk," Ichigo responds without thinking. This earns him a swat from her in the arm. "See what I mean?" Ichigo says with a small glare. "I rest my case." Ichigo says as he crosses his arms stubbornly.

"It really bothers you that you lost to me, doesn't it?" Rukia asks in surprise.

"It didn't bother me at the time, but when you mentioned it in front of Ishida, Sado, and Inoue, it started to bug me." Ichigo admits. He had felt very emasculated by everyone finding out.

"Okay, then we'll have a rematch." Rukia agrees with a smile. She doesn't really care what the outcome will be, even though she'll try. After all, she's already beaten him once.

"Really?" Ichigo asks wide eyed. He hadn't even figured she'd agree to it. He refuses to allow himself to be beaten by her for a second time, she's his girlfriend for crying out loud, and she's nearly half his size.

"What do I get if I win?" Rukia asks with a disturbing glint in her eyes. Ichigo glares at her.

"_If_ you win, I'll buy you two rabbits." Ichigo tells her. Rukia's eyes widen in pleasure.

"Really Ichigo?" Rukia asks happily as visions of rabbits dance across her mind. "I would love to have a pair of rabbits!" Rukia says with a dreamy sigh. It's one of the few times she acts like a normal teenage girl, when she's daydreaming about rabbits. Ichigo thinks she looks adorable, when she has true excitement on her face like now.

"Yes, however…if I win, you have to throw out the whip that you bought yesterday." Ichigo growls.

He had gotten very wide eyed when Rukia had shown him her purchase. She had said it would make things interesting. Ichigo had been terrified. He didn't see anything interesting about a whip. He shudders to think what she had in mind when she bought the damned thing, not to mention the looks she must have gotten from whoever she'd bought it from.

Rukia grins. She had a good laugh at the look in his eyes when she showed him her purchase. He looked like he wanted to run for the hills. In fact, he'd looked more nervous than a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

Rukia has no idea what he had in his mind when she showed it to him, but Urahara had been completely right about his reaction to it. She doesn't have any kind of attachment to the thing, and it had already done its job.

"Okay," Rukia says very simply.

Ichigo doesn't at all like how easily she agrees. He narrows his eyes at her when she gives him an innocent stare.

"I don't know what possessed you to buy that thing anyways." He mutters in a very low voice. He had been appalled at the images that had popped into his brain when she had proudly held up her purchase with a big innocent smile on her face.

Rukia has to force herself not to laugh at his expression. It's mutinous. She loves being with him, and it's even better now that she can kiss and hug him anytime she wants to as well.

"I think you know," Rukia says with a wink. He glares at her with an even more stern expression and this time she can't hold back, she laughs a little.

"Come on, lets go and do this then," Ichigo tells her, ready for their rematch. He wants to do it now, while his heart is in it, before he has anymore lingering thoughts about how cute she looks when she grins at him and winks at him the way she's been doing for the past few minutes.

"Alright." Rukia agrees. They both change into their spirit forms and they shunpo out of his room. It's dark outside and they head for the same spot they'd been last time. It had been an ideal spot and Ichigo just wants a different outcome.

He remembers the hollow they'd fought before they'd battled each other the first time they'd had their challenge. It had been a weakling and Ichigo had killed it before Rukia could even draw her sword. That was what had sparked the whole argument last time.

"This time, I'm going to win!" Ichigo declares as he pulls Zangetsu off of his back. Rukia smiles as she pulls her out Sode No Shirayuki out of her sheath.

Ichigo wants to kick himself in the ass when his first thought is what a beautiful opponent she is. He has to concentrate if he wants to win, otherwise she'll kidou him into submission like last time.

He decides to utilize his own shunpo more, since he feels like it's his strong point. He hadn't taken her seriously enough last time and she had owned him like no tomorrow. He wonders if that's how all of her opponents feel after she's beaten them.

"Done strategizing?" Rukia calls out with a knowing smile. Ichigo glares at her. Sometimes it doesn't work out in his favor when she reads him so easily.

"Shut your trap. We'll do it the same as last time, on the count of three and then go." Ichigo says in a very businesslike tone. Rukia quits grinning. He's serious.

"Alright, go ahead and count it out!" Rukia says as she takes a deep breath to prepare for their match. Ichigo's eyes get very hard and serious when he starts counting, and Rukia finds that she doesn't much like the resolve in his eyes when it's against her instead of with her.

"Alright, I hope you're ready!" Ichigo says in a very hard voice. "I'm starting! One…two…three…go!" Ichigo yells out. Rukia's eyes widen when he yells go, because he instantly disappears. She feels his reiatsu coming at her in full speed and she immediately moves from her location and focuses on the feeling of his reiatsu.

It's good practice, in her mind to fight someone as powerful as Ichigo. It will help her in her own future battles, and she refuses to make this easy on him. She won't throw the fight no matter how much the voice inside nags at her that she should. It would be an insult to her partner.

Ichigo is surprised that the first three times he comes at her, she dodges at the very last second. He wonders how she's managing to dodge him at all when his shunpo is superior to hers. Not as vastly when he's not in bankai, but he's still faster.

Rukia senses him coming upon her and she decides to end his shunpo attacks.

"Dance! Sode No Shirayuki!" Rukia yells in the middle of her shunpo.

Ichigo notices her sword as he's chasing her, and he realizes she's released it. Once again he's struck for a moment by how beautiful her sword is, he just can't help but to think that every time he sees it.

He is about to catch up to her when she calls out for her first dance. When he hears her chanting the title of her first dance, he immediately gets away from her. He knows what White Moon means."Shit!" Ichigo swears as he narrowly misses being iced head to toe by her damned shikai attack. He sends a glare her way only to have her attack him again."Second Dance! White Ripple!" Rukia calls out and Ichigo once again is able to shunpo out of the way, although just barely.

"Damn it!" Ichigo yells. He doesn't want to have to go into bankai or use his hollow powers to beat her when she's only fighting him in shikai, but she won't allow him to beat her any other way, by the looks of it. "You must really want those damned rabbits!" Ichigo shouts in anger.

"Yes I do!" Rukia yells at him before she shoots him with her White Ripple again.

"Too freaking bad!" Ichigo yells out.

"You haven't won yet!" She yells back at him before she sends more White Ripple his way.

"Not yet I haven't is right!" Ichigo calls back, causing Rukia to groan at her own choice of words.

"Way of Destruction, number thirty-three, Blue Fire, Crash Down!" Rukia calls out sending a huge blast in his direction.

"Damn it!" Ichigo yells as he dodges her spell, but once again, it's only barely. "That could have killed me!" Ichigo yells angrily.

"Quit whining! You asked for this battle!" Rukia yells back. Ichigo gets really mad at that retort.

"Bankai!" Ichigo calls out, and Rukia watches as he transforms. She has never told him just how amazingly awesome he looks in bankai, but she always thinks it whenever she sees it. She shouldn't have let herself get distracted, because in an instant, he had his blade to her throat.

"I win." Ichigo says softly, as he looks into her big blue eyes. Rukia gasps at the tip of his blade resting against her throat. She can't even speak. She just nods. He seems to realize she cannot speak. "If you agree that I have won, then drop your sword." Ichigo commands her, and Sode No Shirayuki falls to the ground instantly.

Ichigo doesn't like the fear he saw come into her eyes, even if it was only for a split second. He couldn't cut her even if he tried. In fact he's pretty sure that if he did try, it would work against him, seeing as how his whole soul is wrapped up in her. He pulls his sword away from her neck.

"You were so fast," Rukia whispers as she leans down to pick up her sword. Ichigo lets his bankai dissipate before he puts Zangetsu on his back.

"I couldn't win in shikai though," Ichigo tells her softly. "You're a very difficult opponent." He tells her seriously.

"I guess this makes us even." Rukia says as she seals her sword and slides it back into her sheath. Ichigo leans down and kisses her hard on the lips.

"All I ask is that you get rid of that fucking whip." Ichigo says, feeling bad at how he'd overpowered her in bankai. He's also a bit disappointed that he couldn't even touch her in shikai. Rukia laughs at his request.

"Of course I'll honor the deal and get rid of the whip, although I won't throw it out, I'll return it and get the money back." Rukia tells him softly.

_The Next Day_

When Rukia had come back home after returning the whip, Ichigo had grabbed her hand and dragged her outside. He'd refused to tell her where they were going.

When they get to a pet shop, Rukia's eyes light up. She stops by some adorable kittens and looks at them with a smile. She loves this place, it's one of the best places in the living world outside of Ichigo's house. She focuses her smile on Ichigo next.

"Cats are my second favorite animal," she breathes as she watches the kittens play in their own showcase.

"Yeah, I like cats too, as long as they don't talk." Ichigo tells her. Rukia laughs as Yoruichi comes to mind. She knows he likes Yoruichi just fine and so she questions his comment.

"You don't like Yoruichi?" Rukia asks in surprise.

"I like her, just not in cat form. It's too freaky to have a chat with a cat." Ichigo says as he drags her away from the kittens and over to the rabbits.

"They're so cute!" Rukia says with a very happy smile.

"Go ahead and pick two." Ichigo says, letting himself grin as she stares up at him in shock.

"But I didn't win!" Rukia says softly.

"This isn't about that. When I realized how happy the thought of having rabbits made you, I knew I'd be buying them regardless of whether I won or lost," Ichigo admits with a blush.

"You're sweeter than anybody I've ever known!" Rukia exclaims as she claps her hands together.

"Don't go telling people that, you'll ruin my image." Ichigo says in a playful growl.

"Okay…I know which ones I want." Rukia tells him.

"Go get the worker." Ichigo tells her. Rukia runs off to find an employee and Ichigo grins as he thinks about how much he enjoys being with her.

When Rukia comes back, practically running, there is young girl behind her, only a couple years older than Ichigo who asks Rukia which ones she wants.

Rukia smiles at Ichigo before she tells the lady which rabbits she chooses.

"I want that completely black rabbit there, and I want the completely white rabbit there." Rukia says, smiling as she points out the rabbits and gives him a smile as she glances at him out of the corner of her eyes. Ichigo grins at the symbolism.

_Making her happy makes me more happy than I ever even realized._


	38. Give You A Reason

_Give You A Reason_

Rukia and Ichigo were having a typical argument about something unimportant. Rukia suddenly falls to the ground and Ichigo looks all around. The spirit force is so heavy, and Ichigo knows who it is instantly.

"Shit!" Ichigo yells as he stares at Rukia who is struggling to breathe. He pops out of his body into soul form and that's when the spirit force strengthens tenfold. Ichigo hears his sisters scream and his eyes widen.

"He's after me, if I go, he'll follow." Ichigo tells Rukia who is incapable of responding. Ichigo flash steps out of his bedroom and quickly moves away from his loved ones. Ichigo is immediately surprised that the gigantic spirit force doesn't follow.

When Ichigo feels the reiatsu fade away from him, he quickly head home. He has a very uneasy feeling. He knew who that reiatsu was, and he had been so sure that if he left his home, the opponent would follow, but now, the reiatsu has clearly left his home, and it's moving away from him.

Ichigo's heart races at the gut feeling in his stomach. It seems as though Rukia's reiatsu is fading further away as well, and she hadn't been able to move. Ichigo flies back into his bedroom and he feels a large amount of emotion well up in his chest when his worst fears are confirmed. Rukia has been abducted and only her gigai was left behind.

Ichigo feels a panic very similar to the one he felt when she'd been forced back to Soul Society so long ago. He clutches his face at his stupidity in not grabbing her up before he jumped out the window.

He'll never make that mistake again. Ichigo feels his frustration and anger welling up in his chest.

"I have to get her back." Ichigo's voice is hard, firm, and without hesitation or fear.

Ichigo hops back out of the window and follows the massive reiatsu at his fastest pace. It seems to have stopped, and Ichigo hurries to the location. When he gets there, he doesn't immediately see Rukia although she sees him. She's been perched up into a tree, and has been told to stay put if she wants to live. She looks at the other spectator to the upcoming fight sitting next to her and she wonders why in the hell she had to be involved in this. This really has nothing to do with her, and now she has to watch as Ichigo fights one of the strongest warriors that Rukia has ever laid eyes on.

A man who's spiritual power is so stifling, you start to lose your breath when it's first upon you, a man with a thirst for battle, no other thirst compares to it, a man who loves battle more than he loves his own life, Zaraki Kenpachi. He had explained rather roughly to Rukia that he was only bringing her so that Ichigo would finally fight him. He had told her it was the only way to get his rematch.

What he did not share with her was that he had done all of this on a dare from Yoruichi. Kenpachi had welcomed the dare with a smile, since it meant fighting with the man he most wanted to fight with. Usually Kenpachi doesn't take dares, but Yoruichi had beat him in a drinking contest and the rules were that the loser has to accept a dare.

Yachiru giggles next to Rukia. She loves that her beloved and amazingly strong Ken-chan is not only going to be battling with a big smile, he'll also be playing cupid. She could not be happier, this is her lucky day, since Ken-chan has never played cupid before.

Ichigo looks around, but he can't pinpoint Rukia's location due to the humongous spirit force of Zaraki Kenpachi.

"Where is Rukia?" Ichigo demands.

"I had to knock her out, she was starting to get annoying." Kenpachi says with a sigh. "But I think I hit her too hard. Oh well, I'm really here to fight you. I figured if I took her, I'd give you a reason to want to fight!" Kenpachi says as he points his sword at Ichigo.

"You hurt Rukia?" Ichigo asks angrily.

"What's it to you?" Kenpachi asks in a bored voice.

"What?" Ichigo roars as his own spirit power starts to increase, without him even willing it to. Rukia looks down at this scene in a bit of shock. Why had Kenpachi lied?

"I see you're ready to fight! I knew that girl was the way to get you into this battle! It's obvious you love her!" Kenpachi says with a laugh. Ichigo glares angrily at him. Rukia's eyes widen further at this exchange.

"Shut up!" Ichigo yells, unable to understand the direction of the conversation.

"Then draw!" Kenpachi roars. Ichigo rips Zangetsu off of his back.

"Rukia had better be okay!" Ichigo yells as he charges. "You better not have hurt her!"

"So what if I did?" Zaraki asks with a laugh as he defends against Ichigo's powerful Zangetsu.

"She's not dead…you're lucky for that!" Ichigo growls at him as they clash swords for a moment.

"You have a real close and personal relationship with her to be able to tell that while in the midst of battle." Kenpachi tells him with a grin.

"I know all of my comrades' reiatsu!" Ichigo argues back instantly.

"She's only your comrade? That's boring." Kenpachi says as he swings his sword and Ichigo blocks. Ichigo also blushes at that comment.

"Stop talking about Rukia!" Ichigo yells. "Getsuga Tenshou!" Ichigo sends a powerful slash attack in the direction of Kenpachi, but Zaraki dodges it.

"Nice!" Zaraki says in response to Ichigo's shikai attack. "Why shouldn't I talk about her? What's she to you besides just a comrade?" Kenpachi asks as he flash steps at Ichigo and swings his sword as hard as he can with both hands.

Ichigo blocks with Zangetsu but he feels like he's being slowly buried into the ground. He pushes with all of his strength and jumps back. Ichigo's eyes glow brightly from the spirit force building.

"Bankai!" Ichigo yells furiously. When he appears in his bankai form, Zaraki looks impressed.

"Amazing! I absolutely love fighting you!" Zaraki says with a big smile. Rukia gives Yachiru a bit of a glare when she giggles.

"Icchy is getting really mad!" Yachiru grins at Rukia after she says this. Rukia focuses back on the fight. Ichigo points his blade at Zaraki before answering his earlier question.

"She is life and death to me. She is the reason I am this powerful. Every bit of power I've ever gained was for her sake alone!" Ichigo yells before he appears in front of Zaraki without warning and swings Zangetsu at him full force. Zaraki is only barely able to get his blade up to defend in time.

"You have a great bankai!" Zaraki grunts as he stays Ichigo's blade from his head. Ichigo pulls back to swing again, and Zaraki rips off his eye patch. "I wonder if a bankai based on love can beat me!" He says with a gleam in his eyes as his reiatsu blasts even harder.

Rukia nearly falls out of the tree it's so strong. Yachiru giggles.

"Now it's going to get good!" She says smiling and clapping.

Ichigo looks shocked_. A bankai based on love?_

He had never even consciously considered that his bankai was based on love, or more specifically, his love for Rukia. Ichigo narrows his eyes.

"What?" Ichigo finally says. Zaraki rolls his eyes before he charges.

"Isn't that what you meant when you said your power was gained for her?" Zaraki asks with a Cheshire cat smile lighting up his face as he attacks.

Ichigo is able to stop being distracted long enough to block the attack.

"I didn't say that!" Ichigo yells loudly eye to eye with Zaraki. Ichigo can't think about that when he's in battle. _Rukia has been knocked out! How hard did Kenpachi hit her? I can't let this draw out to long…I have to save Rukia!_

"You didn't have to! Or are you trying to tell me that you _don't_ love her?" Zaraki demands before Ichigo shoves his sword away and takes a dangerous swing at Zaraki's middle. Zaraki jumps away and he manages to get away before Ichigo's blade can do serious damage, but Ichigo still gets a piece of him. Blood squirts out of Zaraki's wound.

The moment Zaraki glances down to look at the squirting blood, Ichigo flies forward at top speed and jams Zangetsu into Zaraki's chest. Right in the middle. He then brings his sword down, creating a very severe wound as he half rips open Zaraki right where he stands.

"You shouldn't have abducted Rukia. You shouldn't have even touched her." Ichigo tells him in a very low and angry voice. Zaraki scoffs.

"Ah, but then I wouldn't have been able to have this fight with you. Tell me before I die…do you love her?" Zaraki asks, earning a very surprised look from Ichigo. "If you answer that, I'll tell you where she's at." Zaraki finishes, earning a look of disbelief from Ichigo.

_Why is this Zaraki's biggest interest?_

Rukia subconsciously leans forward to hear the conversation. Yachiru notices the action and smiles hugely. Rukia holds her breath and watches with great anticipation as Ichigo blushes and clears his throat. He definitely wants to find Rukia and make sure she's alright.

"I guess I do. You wondered if a bankai based on love could beat you, didn't you? You have the answers to both of your questions now. Where is Rukia?" Ichigo demands in a rough voice.

"I'm here." Rukia says softly after she jumps down from the tree and lands behind Ichigo. Ichigo's eyes widen and he slowly turns around to face her. When he does, his face is flaming red.

_Did she hear that?_

"Rukia! Are you alright?" Ichigo asks as he frantically searches her for any sign of injury.

Ichigo suddenly feels the presence of several different people due to their reiatsu behind him and he turns around again to see Urahara and Yoruichi treating Kenpachi so that he doesn't die from the serious wounds that Ichigo inflicted on him.

"Ken-chan! You're going to be okay!" Yachiru says as she suddenly lands next t Kenpachi. She smiles.

"You did good." Yoruichi tells Zaraki.

"It was worth it." Zaraki grunts with a grin. Ichigo's eyes get wide with horror. He had only admitted his love for Rukia to Kenpachi since it was his dying request and he had said in return he'd tell him where Rukia was. Ichigo hates the idea that he first confessed his love for Rukia to someone _other_ than Rukia. He dissipates his bankai and puts his sword on his back.

"Ichigo." Rukia's voice makes Ichigo's heart completely fill with dread. He takes his sweet time in turning around yet again in order to face her.

"Lets go home." Ichigo says in a low voice. He uses shunpo to head home as he desperately tries to think of what in the hell he's going to do now. He feels a huge wave of anxiety building up in his chest and in his gut. He can feel Rukia behind him, keeping up with his speed. He feels his heart pounding.

He has the sneaking suspicion that she did hear him. He's pretty sure she won't let this go without saying something.

_How am I supposed to explain this?_

Ichigo worries all the way back to his bedroom. When he gets back home, he enters his body and lays on the bed and throws a pillow over his face. Rukia just stares at him. How can he admit that he loves her, and then ignore her completely? She does not get into her gigai though.

A wicked idea suddenly pops into Rukia's head. She knows he loves her and so she will do something she's never done before in her life. She unties the sash at her waist and begins disrobing as Ichigo lays there with the pillow covering his face. He hears the movement of her clothing but he doesn't realize the noise he's hearing is her removing her robes.

He senses her standing beside the bed next to him, and he tries to keep on ignoring her, but she doesn't move.

Rukia is starting to get fed up that he won't look at her now that she's completely nude. At the same exact second that Ichigo pulls the pillow off of his face, Rukia reaches back to smack the pillow off of his face.

What ends up happening is that Ichigo moves the pillow away from his face in time to catch a wicked slap from Rukia. He closes his eyes at the impact and he groans at the pain. When he turns to yell at her, he can't. He suddenly realizes she's completely naked and his mouth drops open as far as it can go.

"Rukia?" Ichigo squeaks. He blinks and she's still standing there naked. She glares at him as he gives her the once over and a big gulp when he finally meets her eyes.

"I wanted to make love to you, and show you that I feel the same way you do, but you were ignoring me!" Rukia snaps as she crosses her arms over her chest. Ichigo's eyes widen at her words. Of all of the responses he thought he might possibly get from her, this had never been it.

"You want to make love?" Ichigo asks. Rukia sighs in frustration.

"I decided a really long time ago that I wouldn't make love until I found a man that I loved, who loved me back just as much. I've waited over a century for that to happen. I've had decades to imagine what it's like and now I want to experience it. Take off your clothes, Ichigo." Rukia says in a very stern voice. Ichigo's eyes widen even more.

"Just like that?" Ichigo asks in a horrified voice, since he never in all his dreams and fantasies ever imagined it happening like this.

"I've been wanting this for so long." Rukia tells him softly before she gets stern again. "Get naked." She says. Ichigo blinks a couple of times at that order.

"Rukia!" Ichigo says it very nervously. He's never even kissed a girl, and now he's just supposed to get naked? That breaks the natural order of things, and he can hardly comprehend the situation. "Am I dreaming?" He asks as he glances around frantically. "I've never even kissed before!" Ichigo admits nervously as he stares up into her eyes. The look in her eyes changes to a very sweet and understanding look.

"Come here then." Rukia whispers. Ichigo sits up and Rukia wraps her arms around him. She leans forward and presses an achingly sweet kiss against his lips. Ichigo kisses her back and it turns from sweet to hungry instantly.

Within moments, he's shed of all of his clothing with Rukia draped naked in his arms.

"You're so soft," Ichigo whispers in amazement as he lets his hands travel up and down her body.

"Ichigo, I want it, _bad_." Rukia tells him in a soft voice.

"I'll give you anything you want," Ichigo whispers before he pulls her up and kisses her some more.

"Make love to me." Rukia tells him against his lips.

"I'll make love to you as many times as you want." Ichigo whispers back before he rolls her over onto her back. He pulls away and trails her most sensitive places with his hands and gives her a look of yearning.

"We'll take our time on the second round. I can't wait anymore!" Rukia tells him urgently. Ichigo nods his head. He stares deep into her eyes as he positions himself to do exactly as she ordered. He confesses his love to her as he slips into her.

When he slides into her, he feels encased all around and it brings on waves of passion and ecstasy that he hadn't known was possible. He slowly withdraws and pushes forward again in experimentation. Rukia lets out a moan of pure pleasure and then she stares straight into his eyes and orders him to do that again.

Within minutes they're both thrusting heatedly against each other, and Rukia can feel that she's at a major climax, and Ichigo can see it on her face and can feel it in the trembling of her body. He can't do anything but find his own release and then congratulate himself silently for lasting long enough his first time to see her experience the same pleasure he had experienced.

"Wow," Rukia says dreamily as Ichigo crushes her back into his arms.

"Oh we'll be doing that a lot," Ichigo promises her with a warm look of love in his eyes.

"Definitely." Rukia replies before she kisses him one last time.

They end up making love eight times that night. They also decide to make love in the morning, when Rukia is back in her gigai. This proves to be their fatal mistake as Isshin flies into his room to wake him up only to find Ichigo is up but in a very different way.

They had decided to try a different position, and Ichigo has Rukia bent over the bed when his father busts in. Isshin can't even speak at the scene he's walked in on, and both Ichigo and Rukia collapse in embarrassment at being seen like that. Isshin instantly spins around so that he's not facing them.

"Oh my god, you're a man!" Isshin finally says a very shocked voice.

"Get out!" Ichigo says in a hoarse voice. He's so mortified. Isshin runs out of the room but leaves the door wide open.

"Girls! You won't believe it! Your brother is finally a man!" Isshin yells. Ichigo quickly pulls away from Rukia and runs over to slam the door shut. He looks back at her with the same embarrassed look.

"Damn." Ichigo says as he scratches his head. That had ruined the mood. Rukia grins at him since they can't change what happened. She gives him a look of promise.

"We'll make up for it tonight." Rukia says softly before she grabs the blanket and shoots into the closet. Ichigo grins.

_Damn straight. _

Ichigo smiles. He can't wait for tonight.


	39. What She Never Knew

_What She Never Knew_

Ichigo doesn't know why he's thinking about it right now, but he can't stop thinking about how all of his strength has been a direct result of Rukia. Every hurdle he's overcome, every time he has saved a life, every time he's truly smiled has been all because of her.

_She is magnificent_.

Ichigo cringes right after he thinks that. He really shouldn't let his mind go all mushy, otherwise the mush might start coming from his lips. He can't even imagine what kind of expression Rukia would give him if he said those words to her. She'd probably look at him like he'd lost his mind. Maybe he has.

He lets himself reflect deeply on his very intense and painful bankai training. He had gotten cut and stabbed so many times, and he hadn't even thought twice about it. He would have done anything to save Rukia. He would have happily traded his life for hers. She was only supposed to die because of him anyways.

_That's what I told myself, but I was dead wrong._

Of course he saved Rukia because she deserved to be saved after what she'd done for him and his family, and the truth he'd learned about his mother's death as a direct result of having met her…but it was far more than that.

He had said it out loud at the time and he hadn't even realized how significant his words had been. He had no idea what he had _really_ been revealing. Somehow, he had lucked out and she never realized what those words had meant either.

_Thank you Rukia, because of you, the rain has stopped._

He feels his heart and then his entire body ache from loving her so much and not acting on it. He can feel the stress that has been building up in his body because he has not told her exactly how important she is to him.

He never lets himself dwell on the tiny worry that likes to pipe up in his head. He has the worries quite frequently but he usually pushes them away.

_What if she leaves me again? What will I do then? Will I regret this moment where I laid here, feeling all the love in the world and did nothing?_

Ichigo scowls as he considers what this future regret would feel like. He closes his eyes.

_It would be like having my hands and feet tied up and then being pulled in opposite directions slowly. It would make me feel like my insides were constantly being shredded. It would be a million times worse than the pain Zangetsu put me through during bankai training. _

_I would be incapable of smiling. I would probably lose my will to be a Shinigami…again. I would probably sacrifice my life making a stupid mistake just because she isn't there to whack me in the head and tell me to straighten up and stop being such an idiot._

Ichigo sits up with a lump in his stomach. He knows in his heart that he doesn't have a life if she isn't by his side, and it kills him that he just silently protects and admires her without having the courage to _tell_ her.

There's always one thing that stops him from telling her. It's the dizzying fear that if he tries to tell her, she'll run far away from him. He wonders if it's a scapegoat.

_Do I really believe Rukia would run from me?_

Ichigo tries to predict what her reaction would be to him telling her he was so deeply in love with her that he wanted her by his side always, and was willing to do no matter what it took to make it happen, as long as that one thing isn't living any sort of life without her in it.

He scrunches his face up as he tries to even fathom what she would say to a speech like that. No matter how hard he tries, he cannot imagine what she would say to him.

He remembers again how many times he felt searing pain throughout his entire body, just because he wanted to save her.

_I even fought Kenpachi, and won…kind of. I beat all kinds of people just to save her life. _

Ichigo blushes when he remembers suddenly how he had heard whispers in Soul Society of how romantic his rescue of Rukia was. That a man who bore a striking resemblance to her former lieutenant whom she had held a high regard for came and stopped the released Soukyoku. The blade that had the power of a million zanpakutous and Ichigo had stopped it with just his blade.

He had made a point to ignore those things when he'd heard them at the time, he had been too embarrassed to even let himself think about his feelings for Rukia in public. He only ever did that in private, and until tonight he'd stopped himself before he let himself think about it for an extended period of time.

Ichigo sighs as he stares at the closet she typically sleeps in.

_I would have nobody but myself to blame if she left me. I can't even tell her how I feel._

He thinks she knows somewhere in her heart how deep his feelings run for her, and he hopes that's why she's been sticking around lately.

He knows if he had to go back and do it all again, he would in an instant. For her, he would do just about anything, except bare his heart verbally. He feels his actions speak loud enough, it's probably why people called it romantic. He supposes Rukia doesn't agree since he tossed her to Renji like she was a baseball.

He hadn't exactly been pleased with the excited way she'd greeted Renji upon his arrival versus him, and yes he could have flown her down, but he wanted to have a good view of what the Shinigami would do once she started to escape. She had been unhurt, but it had probably ruined the romance of the moment, at least for her.

_She is the only girl I've ever given permission to yell at me as much as she likes for any reason. She's the only girl I've ever confided in about my mom, since Tatsuki, and she only knew because we were friends. She was with me when I saw my mother's dying wish. She has seen more of my smiles than anyone else._

_She's the only girl for me._

Ichigo sighs in frustration as he glares at the closet. She's in there, probably sleeping, even though he can't hear her. She has no idea how he's sitting up at night here, just thinking about her, just wanting her, and just loving her. He wonders what she would do if she knew.

_Would she tell me she feels exactly the same way? If I knew for sure that her response would be that, I'd go rip her out of that closet and kiss her silly right now._

Ichigo smiles at that bold thought. If he _ever_ tried to steal a kiss from her, she'd probably kick his ass like ten times in a row.

His mind darts to the night he fought the Grande Fisher and then passed out on top of her. He had fallen forward, but he hadn't yet lost his consciousness when she caught him and let him slide down the front of her chest before she dropped down with him and rested his head in her lap. He had lost consciousness after his head hit her lap, and he'd been aware of her stroking his face softly, gently, what he'd found to be a loving manner. That was when he'd gone completely out.

He had never told her the dreams he'd had that night either. When his head had slid past her chest, he had felt a complete sensation of rightness in the feeling of leaning on her and depending on her to make sure he stayed okay. He feels a tear fall from his eye, but he ignores it and pretends it never fell. He refuses to acknowledge that the powerful Kurosaki Ichigo could ever let a tear fall from his face at the manly age of sixteen. Another tear rolls down.

He always wants to depend on her, and he always wants her to depend on him. He still doesn't know how to tell her all of these things though. He flops over and stares at the wall rather than the closet as he tries to come up with the best way of ending the painful silence, it's just that nothing he comes up with, sounds like something that would or should ever come out of his mouth.

"Sekkai-ich daisuke" Ichigo whispers very, very softly before he cringes.

_No way _can he tell her he loves her more than anything in the world. He sighs again in frustration. No matter what he comes up with, it all seems completely useless. Nothing he comes up with is something that he could actually say out loud to her.

She never knew exactly how hard he fought for her, and she certainly never knew that he's loved her for nearly as long as he's known her. How could he not love her when she bestowed him with the power of her very own soul? How could he not feel an attachment to her after that? He's certain she has an attachment for him, or she wouldn't stay in his closet, she'd stay at Urahara's place with Renji, her childhood friend. Ichigo rolls flat on his back and closes his eyes.

Instead she has told him she can't sleep anywhere but here. Of course she'd said it after calling him a fool and while she was running away from him, but he had felt his heart race faster at the words she had spoken. She plowed into Hueco Mundo and decked him for not believing in her, and she had been right, he should have waited for her, his partner, his other half. She would never let him down if she had any say in it. She simply had been delayed.

In the closet, Rukia lays awake. She can feel his reiatsu flaring, and it's keeping her from being able to sleep. She can tell something is on his mind, and she wonders if he would share it with her if she asked.

_Probably not, he'd probably tell me to shut up and leave him alone._

Rukia scowls a bit at that thought. Sometimes they're a bit harsh with one another, but that doesn't change how she feels about him. He is as important to her as her own heart is. This is why she will never allow him to die. She will happily die in his place if it means he will live on.

She knows he loves her, she just doesn't know if he realizes that he loves her. Byakuya had given her a long lecture after he'd recovered from his clash with Ichigo at Soukyoku. He had told her that she needed to be aware that the boy was head over heels in love with her, and that she'd best keep that in mind considering his _darker_ powers.

Rukia is well aware of the struggle he had to gain control over his hollow powers, and that they were the kind of powers that would eat his soul alive if he didn't get a handle on them. She had been so proud that he had found the resolve to take control of his inner hollow, although she isn't exactly glad that it took an espada attack upon her for him to find that resolve. She loves him but she absolutely hates how he sticks her into the category of people he must protect. She knows it's hypocritical since he's on her list of people to protect, but that's only because she's felt that way since she first laid eyes on him, unlike his feelings for her.

She keeps feeling his reiatsu fluctuate and she realizes he's only once been this disturbed about something. She's felt this kind of activity from him the night before he visited his mother's grave. It had been a far darker feeling that night, unlike tonight, but it's still just as strong of fluctuations. She realizes something has him very upset, and she wonders what it could possibly be.

She tries her best to ignore his troubled reiatsu, but it's actually starting to seep into the closet and it's having a strange effect on her. She keeps getting the sensation that she is at the center of his worries tonight and she wonders why that could possibly be.

They had gotten along great today, for once, they hadn't even argued. They had gone out for ice cream, taken a walk, killed a few hollows, and had a fairly nice day off from school. It had been such a nice day that she had first laid down feeling good until she had felt Ichigo's reiatsu signify that he was in turmoil.

After two whole hours of feeling it with no sign of stopping, she slides open the closet door silently. She silently walks over to the bed and looks down at him. His eyes are closed and he has a distressed look on his face, and when she stares closely, it appears as though there are dried tear marks on his face, as though he had cried silently.

She had never imagined that she might see him so emotional when it wasn't around the time of year of his mother's death. He looks heartbroken as he lays there, obviously contemplating something very important, and yet now that she's in a spot where his reiatsu is leaking directly onto her, she senses more strongly that his angst is over her.

She stares at him as she contemplates the best way to ease his heart. She thinks back on all of the times she has been comforted until she felt better, and she realizes that there is one very perfect way to comfort him, and so she sits down on the bed, alerting him to her presence, and she watches as he opens his eyes in shock.

He looks at her in a pair of very, very short shorts and a rabbit tank top on. He's never seen her in this, usually she's wearing plaid pajamas which are by no means sexy, unlike how she appears right now as she stares down into his eyes with a very concerned look directed right at him.

"I want you to stop worrying about whatever it is that is bothering you. I can tell you are having some very emotional and very difficult thoughts right now. I want you tell me what's bothering you if that's what it takes to make you stop worrying." Rukia tells him softly, as she stares at his face. The tear stains have made her all soft. She can handle his scowls and his smiles, and the anger, but the tearstained face has an impact on her that she hadn't known was possible.

Ichigo just stares at her. He can't seem to speak. All he wants to do is yank her down and pull her close to him, and still say nothing. He doubts he could ever get away with such an action though, and so he just stares.

Rukia stares back at the look in his eyes. He still has a bit of surprise showing in his face, but no anger, and certainly nothing that suggests he'd like to push her away. She leans in closer, still keeping eye contact. She puts one hand on the bed on one side of his head and puts her other hand on the other side of his head.

Ichigo holds his breath. She's so close. It wouldn't take much just to reach up and pull her in for a kiss. She's so close and she keeps inching closer, as if she wants to be eye to eye with him. He still can't breathe. His face starts to turn red as she's just centimeters from his face. She's supporting herself with her hands but he would barely have to lift his head to kiss her if he could find the courage to do so.

Rukia can hardly believe it, he's holding his breath as she leans closer and he shows no signs whatsoever of pushing her away. His eyes are open and if she wants to she can easily lean forward a tiny bit and just kiss him. She wonders if she can bring herself to do it.

Ichigo stares at her eyes and he realizes she has a soft look of surprise that just suddenly appeared.

She can hardly believe he isn't pushing her away.

He can hardly believe she's this close while he's aching for her, of her own volition. Can't she see how much he wants and loves her by the look in his eyes?

Rukia sees it. The flash of longing. That's all it takes to propel her head forward as if by a magical force, she presses her lips very softly against his at first, until she feels him kissing her back. Then she presses harder and lets her weight fall on top of him.

Ichigo crushes her tight in his arms and kisses her with all of the emotion he can from the past few hours of agonizing thinking and longing.

When they finally pull away, breathing very hard. Ichigo holds her very close and he can feel her breathing in his neck, and most amazingly, she isn't squirming to get away, she's just letting him hold her in his arms.

He doesn't say anything, he can't. She seems incapable of speaking too. They don't need to talk about what promises and vows they just made with that soul wrenching kiss, they just need to get over the shock of it all.

She loves him, and he loves her, and he thought that was what she never knew, but now he knows that she does.

_And they never had to say a word._

Unspoken, yet acknowledged by both is the love that neither of them will ever let get away. As black and white as their released swords, and as sure as the sun that is beating down with blazing heat in his inner world.


	40. As Requested: Pregnant Friends

**_A/N-_Even though I was unable to post yesterday, this will be the only one shot today, since I'm trying to get ahead in my long story. If you haven't read it and you like my writing, please go and start reading _Agreed To In Innocence_, since it's as IchiRuki as can be. This particular one shot was requested by someone who wanted me to do a story on IchiRuki & Ishihime kids, although the person said they wouldn't mind a pregnancy story and I liked that idea best. This is dedicated to the reader who requested it, you know who you are :D**

_Pregnant Friends_

"Ishida, why on earth did you bring her over? One pregnant woman is enough!" Ichigo hisses in his lowest possible voice since he doesn't want to be overheard by the highly emotional and highly hormonal woman he married.

"Ichigo, I want pickles and ice cream!" Rukia calls out, causing Ichigo's face to turn a greenish color.

"Oh, I used to love eating that before I got pregnant, now all I want to eat is fried chicken and rice!" Orihime tells Rukia. "Maybe you'll like it better with whipped cream rather than ice cream, that was my absolute favorite." Orihime tells Rukia, causing Ichigo to actually gag.

"Get some fried chicken and rice for her too!" Rukia says, nodding her head at her pregnant friend.

"You're coming with me!" Ichigo drags Ishida out of the house.

"Fine!" Ishida mutters.

"Are you insane? Are you freaking insane? What were you thinking?" Ichigo asks in a much louder voice now that they're out of the house.

"Orihime said she wanted to hang out with Rukia, since she doesn't feel fat when she's around another pregnant lady. She asked me with tears in her eyes, and so there you have it." Ishida grumbles to Ichigo.

"I can't handle having two pregnant women at my house, we need to think of an excuse to disappear when we get back with their food." Ichigo tells him. Ishida nods.

"As sweet as Orihime usually is, every day is a challenge now that she's pregnant. The smallest things set her off and make her cry. She was watching a cartoon and she started crying during it! A cartoon!" Ishida says with a scowl.

"Rukia hasn't done much crying, she's done more bitching and yelling than anything else. Even pregnant, she hardly cries. I can't wait for the horny stage." Ichigo says with a small laugh.

"Shouldn't that be starting any day now?" Ishida asks, he read the pregnancy book with Orihime, when she looked like she might cry if he didn't.

"I know, that's why I can't wait," Ichigo tells him with another grin.

"You two already have an active sex life," Ishida says, remembering how twice last week he'd brought Orihime over, only to hear Rukia and Ichigo being incredibly loud from passion when they got there. They could hear them clear outside. Ichigo blushes.

"Shut up!" Ichigo growls. He doesn't like being reminded that he and Rukia tended to get so wild that the neighbors could hear them.

"You should consider soundproofing your bedroom, seriously, you might traumatize your kid if you don't within the next two years." Ishida says in his know it all tone.

"Shut up! For crying out loud, what Rukia and I do in the privacy of our own home is nobody else's business," Ichigo mutters.

"You're the one who brought up sex." Ishida points out.

"No I brought up a stage in pregnancy, you brought up sex." Ichigo corrects him.

"Same difference," Ishida says with a scoff.

"You're wrong." Ichigo argues.

"Forget it." Ishida says with a sigh.

They finally decide that when they get back with food that they're going to tell Rukia and Orihime that they're going to go visit Sado for a bit.

When they finally make it back with the specified food, they quickly run out the door with yells that they're visiting Sado. Rukia looks at Orihime.

"I think our husbands just escaped." She tells her, and Orihime giggles.

"I've been crying a lot," Orihime admits. "I think it drives him crazy." Her eyes well up with tears at those words and Rukia quickly comforts her friend.

"Don't let it bother you, it's not like he has to carry a load around in his body for months on end." Rukia says indignantly.

"I know, but I can't help crying, I can't seem to stop myself," Orihime says as tears roll down her face to prove her point. Rukia takes a big bite of pickle and moans before grabbing a scoop of ice cream

"Oh yeah, this is hitting the spot," Rukia says with a mouth full of ice cream and a look of pure satisfaction on her face. Orihime picks up some of her chicken.

"I am pretty hungry," Orihime says before she stops crying and takes a bite. Her eyes light up happily. "Tasty!" She says, smiling through her teary eyes.

"You're right, this is fantastic!" Rukia tells her, and they both stop talking to pig out on food that they'd been craving. When Rukia and Orihime have finally had their fill, Orihime sits back and sighs.

"I don't like being pregnant." Orihime admits to Rukia. Rukia's eyes widen a bit at this admission.

"Really? I love it!" Rukia says with a grin. "I think Ichigo loves it too, secretly of course," Rukia says with a laugh.

"I can't control any of my emotions. I think that this will be the only pregnancy that I actually finish." Orihime tells her softly. "I am going to get on the pill after my baby is born."

"You have to do what's best for you. It's your body," Rukia says, surprising Orihime.

"I thought you'd try to talk me into having more," Orihime says with a smile.

"Just because I want to have enough kids to have an official Kurosaki baseball team doesn't mean you have to as well. I've always believed in a woman's right to reproductive choices." Rukia tells her. "My choice just happens to be that I want to have a ton of babies with Ichigo." Rukia says still smiling, her eyes sparkling.

Orihime is horrified when she realizes a thought just crossed her brain that never should have.

_Would I feel the same way if I were married to Kurosaki-kun_?

She pushes that thought away and out of mind as quickly as possible.

"I don't know how you do it, it seems like you've barely changed since you got pregnant. You still seem like the same girl you were before you got pregnant," Orihime tells her with amazement in her voice.

"Ichigo would disagree with you there," Rukia tells her with a wink, causing Orihime to giggle a little bit.

"When we came over both times last week, it sounded like your relationship was really good," Orihime says with a blush, as she recalls the passionate moans and the shouts that indicated that the couple were getting their rocks off last week. Rukia smiles.

"He looks at me the same way he did before I got pregnant, like I am the tastiest treat he's ever had, and the most fun ride that he's ever ridden," Rukia says with a huge smile. Orihime smiles back.

"I haven't had the desire to…you know." Orihime whispers with embarrassment. Rukia looks at her miserable friend. Pregnancy just doesn't agree with everybody and Orihime was one of those people. It seemed to drain her and make her completely depressed. Her breasts have always been unnaturally large, but now it looks like she has extra large basketballs in her shirt.

"You haven't wanted to? Why not?" Rukia asks her curiously. She had been under the impression that Ishida was as hot for Orihime as Ichigo was for her.

"I feel so huge and ugly. Plus, the last time I thought I'd do it, just to make him happy, it took awhile to get him in the mood. That really bothered me. Before I got pregnant, that never happened," Orihime admits. Rukia's eyes soften in understanding.

"You're still beautiful." Rukia whispers to her friend. "I'm sure Ishida thinks so too."

"The joy that I overheard you and Kurosaki-kun experiencing last week is something I have never experienced." Orihime says as she lets more tears fall from her eyes. Rukia's eyes widen in shock.

"You've never enjoyed it?" Rukia asks her in shock.

"No, I didn't mean that, Ishida is a very thorough and gentle lover. Before I got pregnant, it's not that I didn't enjoy it, I just never screamed." Orihime says as she bites her lip.

Rukia can't help but grin. Ichigo is in terrific shape and he does his best to please her every time, but what pleases Rukia most is hard, fast, and heart pounding sex and Ichigo often has difficulty keeping up with her demands. Lately though, she's been feeling extra sensitive and Ichigo has taken care of her perfectly.

"You have to tell him to go faster and harder then." Rukia says logically, and her friend's eyes widen to huge proportions.

"I could never!" Orihime says with her mouth gaped open.

"He won't know what you want unless you tell him though," Rukia argues sensibly.

"If they knew what we were talking about right now, they'd be so mad at us." Orihime whispers as she glances at the door.

"I have the perfect idea for you! This is what you do. You wait until he's asleep and then you pull down his boxers and get him going with your mouth. When he wakes up all disoriented and ready to go, you tell him he's going to have a real workout tonight. When he starts, you should only say two things. Faster and harder. Say it over and over until you hear yourself screaming the way you heard me scream. Then you'll feel better!" Rukia tells her with a grin. She isn't as self conscious about lovemaking as Ichigo is, and she has no problems discussing it with her friend. Her friend on the other hand seems to be having a lot of difficulty.

"I don't know if I can do that!" Orihime says with a gasp.

"You have to do it." Rukia tells her in a hard voice. "You want to be happy don't you?" She asks her. Orihime nods.

"Yes." She answers softly.

"Just find the courage to do it, I think you'll be happier tomorrow if you take my advice tonight." Rukia tells her. Orihime nods. She does want to be happy, and even though Rukia's as pregnant as she is, and just as big in the belly, she seems quite happy. Maybe it's because she vocalizes what she wants to make her happy.

"You're right. I will take a page from your book tonight!" Orihime says with new resolve. Rukia grins at her.

"That's the spirit! Go on and get your man, girl!" Rukia says in an apparent cheer.

They watch the television until their husbands turn back up, and the ladies both smile at their husbands as they enter. Orihime feels a bit of nervousness when she looks at her husband and imagines the things they'll do in bed tonight.

"I'm home Rukia." Ichigo announces as he walks inside and walks over to her and plants a big kiss on her cheek.

"Hey, " Rukia says grinning.

"We're going to head home." Ishida tells them.

"Come over tomorrow," Rukia instructs Orihime.

"Okay," she answers, knowing that Rukia will want details on how her night went when she took Rukia's advice. Ishida helps his wife get up from the couch and they walk at a fairly slow pace to the door. Ichigo watches them go with a sigh of relief.

"How are you feeling?" Ichigo asks her in a murmur when the door shuts behind their friends. He starts to rub her shoulders and Rukia lets out a moan of pleasure at that.

"That feels so nice…don't stop." Rukia whispers. Ichigo grins. As much as she orders him around, she outshines all other women…even when she's pregnant. He doesn't mind all of her demands as much as he acts like he does.

"Okay," Ichigo says, and he spends a long while rubbing her shoulders while she enjoys it.

"I gave Orihime sex advice today." Rukia tells him. It's this statement that ends the rub. Ichigo's hands still on her shoulders.

"What?" He asks her with apparent nervousness.

"She mentioned that she hasn't ever had the kind of enjoyment that she heard you and I having, so I gave her advice." Rukia explains, and Ichigo guffaws.

"What did you tell her?" Ichigo asks with a red face.

"I told her to tell him what she wants, like I do with you. Keep rubbing Ichigo!" Rukia says, a bit annoyed at how he stopped. He starts rubbing, a bit slower though.

"You told her that you do that with me?" Ichigo says, horrified. He never wanted anybody to know that much about their sex life.

"Of course! You want to know something really interesting?" Rukia asks him with a smile.

"Sure," Ichigo says, dreading whatever might come out of her mouth next.

"All that talking about it put me in the mood…bad." Rukia tells him, and she turns around to meet his gaze. He has a hungry look in his eyes. It never takes much to get him rearing to go. He grabs her up and takes the steps two at a time to get her to the bed. He gently lays her in bed and sheds his clothes at light speed. He proceeds to remove her own with the same haste, and he looks at her body with all the desire in the world shining in his eyes.

"Damn you're beautiful." Ichigo tells her before he climbs on top of her and starts kissing her.

_The next day_

"So, how did it go?" Rukia asks Orihime who is smiling more brightly today.

"It was amazing!" Orihime replies with a smile that reaches her eyes. "He got so surprised when I started telling him to go faster and harder, but he did it and…I screamed!" Orihime admits with a blush.

"Good for you!" Rukia says with a smile.

"I haven't cried once today yet either!" Orihime says in an amazed voice.

Ichigo and Ishida walk in for Rukia's last comment.

"Men are too stupid to figure out what a woman wants without being told," Rukia says. This causes Ishida to cut the visit short to take his wife home, and Ichigo drags his wife up to their bedroom so that she can tell him exactly what she wants.


	41. As Requested: Birthday Wish

**A/N- I had a request from a loyal reader to do a follow up chapter to the last one with the kids being older. Ichigo and Rukia's oldest daughter is celebrating her ninth birthday for this one, and as always this chapter is dedicated to the one who requested it, enjoy!**

_Birthday Wish_

"I still don't understand why we have to do the kids birthday parties together, they were born a full week apart," Ichigo complains to Rukia. Rukia is smiling more happily than usual today, but she stops when her husband starts to whine.

"Were you going to tell Mizuki and Risa that they couldn't do it together?" Rukia asks him with a glare. Ichigo sighs.

"No. I never thought our kids would become best friends." Ichigo says with a sigh. "I'm in Ishida's company far more often than I'd prefer to be." Ichigo says with a scowl.

"Mizuki is excited about it, don't let her hear you talking like that." Rukia warns him.

Mizuki runs into the room as if on cue.

"Can Risa spend the night tonight?" She begs her parents.

"She'll be staying tomorrow though," Ichigo protests.

"Of course Risa can spend the night!" Rukia says, shooting another glare at Ichigo.

"Why don't you ever spend the night at her house?" Ichigo asks his oldest daughter.

"Her dad never lets us have any fun over there," Mizuki tells him.

"So _that's_ the key!" Ichigo says, smacking his hand to his head. Mizuki sticks her tongue out at her father. He sticks his back out at her, and Rukia starts to giggle. They're so cute together.

"I have a birthday surprise to give you a bit early," Rukia tells her daughter with a huge smile.

"What is it?" Mizuki asks excitedly as she claps her hands.

"I'm pregnant!" Rukia tells her daughter, who's eyes widen and her mouth drops open. Her expression mirrors her father's expression. Her parents have dearly wished for another child for many years, and now her mom is finally pregnant again.

"You are?" Ichigo asks in shock. Rukia grins.

"Yep!" She informs them. Ichigo grabs Rukia up into a huge hug and spins her around happily. He seems to be speechless as he stops spinning and just holds his wife tight in his arms. When he finally does speak, he sounds very choked up.

"I'm so glad!" He says it softly, and Rukia smiles into his shoulder.

"We'll have to pick out names again." Rukia grins. She remembers when they picked out the name Mizuki. It means beauty plus moon. They had thought it was a perfect name for their firstborn daughter, considering it described pieces of their souls. Rukia's released sword has been described as the most beautiful of all the snow and ice types in Soul Society, and the slash attack of Ichigo's released sword was in the shape of a half moon.

To them it had been the perfect name. Ichigo glances at their daughter, with her bright orange hair and amber eyes, she looks a lot like Ichigo, but she's petite like her mother. She and Risa make quite a striking pair of friends since Risa inherited her mother's hair and her father's eyes. They constantly argue as to whose hair is brighter, even though Mizuki always wins that battle, since her hair is a brighter color than Risa's hair is.

"I'm going to go and help Risa bring her stuff over!" Mizuki tells her parents, and they smile at her.

"We have some time, want to go upstairs?" Ichigo asks Rukia, his eyes filled with love. Rukia grins.

"I thought I'd have to ask you!" Rukia giggles. She runs ahead of him, and Ichigo lets her. He gives her butt a little squeeze on the way upstairs.

When they finally make their way back downstairs, Risa is already over.

"How long have you been here?" Rukia asks the girls.

"Long enough to hear you scream," Mizuki says with a scowl that looks remarkably like her father's. The other kids in the neighborhood always tease her as a result of her parents loud sexual encounters. They had gotten the room soundproofed but that did no good when they left the window open. _Everyone_ could hear them.

Ichigo and Rukia look a little bit embarrassed, but they're used to these kinds of remarks by now, particularly from Mizuki, who used to worry her father was hurting her mother. One day when she was almost five, she had burst in on her parents making love and screamed at her father to stop hurting her mother.

Her eyes had widened into huge orbs when her mom popped up and pulled the cover up to cover them as she explained that Ichigo wasn't hurting her, they were just having grown up fun. Ichigo had been rather perturbed by the incident and often brought it up to Rukia, even now.

_The Next Day_

"Too many freaking kids in the house." Ichigo mutters as another child who he doesn't know the name of dashes in front of him to head for the other kids. Isshin is out there entertaining the kids. Yuzu and Karin are out there as well.

"You love it," Rukia tells him, coming up behind him.

"I don't love other people's kids," Ichigo informs her with a scoff, causing Rukia to chuckle.

"Kurosaki…I heard you're expecting! Congratulations." Ishida says with a drawl as he walks over to join them.

"Mizuki told you already?" Rukia asks in surprise, and Ishida nods.

"I've wanted to have another kid too, but Orihime refuses. She says being pregnant was the worst time in her life." Ishida says sadly.

"You could always adopt!" Rukia tells him with big eyes. Ishida grins at her.

"I suppose." He had always wanted to have a son, even though Risa was showing promising talent as a Quincy. He would prefer to have his own kids, considering Orihime's and his own special abilities.

Rukia drops her cup of tea when she senses an extremely strong spirit force approaching, and it does not belong to a Shinigami.

"Ichigo!" Rukia's eyes widen and Ishida's do too.

"It's a big one!" Ishida tells them.

"That's what she said," Ichigo jokes before he pops himself out of his body. Rukia grabs onto his body and holds it up while Ichigo flies in the direction of the reiatsu.

"There haven't been any around here in awhile." Rukia whispers sadly. Orihime runs over to her husband when she sees Kurosaki fly off in his Shinigami robes.

"It will be over soon enough," Ishida says with a quiet calm.

"You're right." Rukia says as she bites her lip. Even if Ichigo is ridiculously strong, she always worries he'll make a stupid mistake that could kill him, and she doesn't know how she could possibly handle such a thing. Orihime pats her friend's shoulder to comfort her.

"See, it's already dead!" Ishida says with a grin. Ichigo arrives back by use of shunpo and gets back into his body. He gives Rukia a grateful look for holding it up for him while he wasn't inside of it. The kids might have freaked out to see him laying on the ground, not breathing.

"Thanks for finishing it quickly," Rukia whispers, and Ichigo glances down into her still worried eyes before he plants a quick kiss on her lips.

"Nothing could ever keep me from coming back to you," he tells her huskily. Ishida blushes and walks outside with his wife to keep an eye on the kids.

"I love you, Ichigo." Rukia whispers.

"Not as much as I love you," Ichigo says as he places a hand on her abdomen.

"I'm so thrilled that we're finally going to have another baby, it's what I've dreamed about," Rukia tells him, still grinning.

"I'd take you upstairs, but I have a strong feeling Mizuki would not approve." Ichigo tells her with a grin. Rukia smiles back.

"Maybe if we shut the window…" Rukia says with a sparkle in her eyes. They race to their bedroom, and in their haste, they forget to shut the window.

Mizuki and Risa are being sung to for their birthday, and when the song ends and everyone claps, the girls lean forward to blow out their candles together. Everyone holds their breath while they wait to see if they blow them all out, but they miss one.

In the silence, a loud lusty and satisfied scream from Rukia reaches the ears of the entire party and Mizuki smacks her face into her hands. Orihime and Ishida trade blushing glances with each other. _Some things just never change._

"That's right Ichigo, give her the _Kurosaki special_!" Isshin shouts, causing several people to groan and blush. Karin smacks her father in the back of the head.

"If only we'd gotten the last one!" Mizuki says with a horrified voice. Risa looks at her sympathetically and pats her arm. She feels badly for her friend who is sure to hear about this until next year.

"There's always next year," she whispers to her friend.

Mizuki hates that she'll have to wait another whole year to try to get her wish granted.

_I wish everyone couldn't hear it when mom and dad are in bed together._


	42. Like Rabbits

_Like Rabbits_

Ichigo was sitting on the roof of his house, just staring off into space, not really thinking, when he happened to overhear Rukia enter his bedroom. He only knows it's her because Kon screams when he sees her.

"Nee-" Kon starts to call out for her but his voice is immediately muffled, presumably by Rukia's foot. Ichigo finds himself grinning at that inside knowledge.

"Shut it, Kon." Rukia's voice sounds like she has no patience. Ichigo feels his face fall a bit. It's never a good day when she has no patience.

"What are you doing?" Kon asks her.

"Packing. I have to return to Soul Society." Rukia says in a businesslike tone. Ichigo's eyes widen. She hadn't told him this.

"For a visit?" Kon asks in a squeak.

"No, for good." Rukia tells him. "That's my home, when I'm visiting anywhere, I'm visiting here." Rukia explains to the idiotic stuffed animal. Ichigo's mouth falls open at that comment.

_How can she say that? This sure as certain is her home, more so than the place she stays at in Soul Society. _Home is where the heart is after all, and hadn't Rukia smiled when Inoue welcomed her home the last time?

"When will you visit again?" Kon asks in a choked voice.

"When I'm ordered to." Rukia replies calmly.

"How can you be so relaxed about this? What about Ichigo?" Kon asks her.

"I don't think he needs me anymore. He is capable of finding his resolve without me around." Rukia tells Kon. Ichigo sits on the roof as tense as can be as he listens to this.

"How can you say that?" Kon asks in a sad voice. "Don't you remember what happened the last time you didn't stay here with him?" Kon asks her.

"That was before he allowed other people besides me to affect his heart as he fought. He's changed, he's very strong and knows what he needs to do. He doesn't need me here to kill hollows." Rukia says, and Ichigo thinks she doesn't sound like she usually does. He wonders what she is talking about when she makes these comments.

"Don't think the idiot has changed at all!" Kon warns her. Rukia sighs loud enough for Ichigo to hear it.

"I'll keep an eye on him from Soul Society. I'm not heartless." Rukia tells Kon.

"What do you mean he allows other people to affect his heart? You're the only one that truly matters!" Kon tells her urgently.

"You weren't there when we all went to Hueco Mundo, truth is, I wasn't with him at the time, but I heard that when Inoue told Ichigo he couldn't get hurt anymore, he found his resolve and beat the sixth espada." Rukia explains to Kon. Ichigo stands straight up. He can't believe she's calmly talking about leaving him, yet again.

"So you're jealous?" Kon asks with uncertainty. Ichigo holds his breath at that possibility.

"Don't be an idiot. Ichigo is a man. He doesn't need me babysitting over him when he's more than strong enough to take care of situations around here by himself. He can get back to his life, and not have me living in his closet anymore, and he can date. It must have been difficult for him to always have me around, messing up the normal flow of his life." Rukia says with a very sad sigh.

"You're right about him not needing you babysitting him, but you're wrong about him not needing you." Kon tells her in a disturbed tone.

"Ichigo has never said anything like that, so forgive me if I don't jump at that excuse to stick around. I'm sure Ichigo will be thrilled once I no longer occupy his closet." Rukia tells Kon. "Now shut up or I'll tape you to the toilet again." Rukia's voice is firm and Ichigo clenches his fists.

How can he let her go? He can't even consider life without her. He doesn't understand what Inoue has to do with any of it. He remembers back to the fight she's talking about, and Inoue had simply helped him get motivated. Ishida or Sado could have done the same thing and it would have had the same effect. He certainly never felt like Inoue was the _reason_ he won the fight. He had been more motivated to beat that espada when he had a flashback of the way he had hurt Rukia.

"What if he did say it?" Kon asks, tempting fate.

"Then I would put in a request to stay here." Rukia answers immediately. Ichigo starts taking deep breaths. Can he do it?

"Are you going to tell him before you go this time?" Kon asks very quietly. Rukia is quiet for a minute.

"I'll have to, he'd freak out if my reiatsu disappeared without warning." Rukia says in a small voice. Kon sighs a big breath of relief.

"Thanks for that. I wouldn't want to have to be the one to tell him you abandoned him by choice this time around." Kon tells her in a relieved voice.

"Where do you get all of these ideas at anyways? Has Ichigo ever given you any reason to believe he can't get along without me?" Rukia snaps at Kon.

"The way he acts around you is enough for me to know he needs you." Kon tells her softly, though Ichigo hears it.

He can't even think straight right now, but he knows that her proposed plan will never work for him. Ichigo squats down and hugs his knees in misery. There is only one way to stop her from leaving, and only one way to stop the madness. He will have to face up to a few things. He will have to own up to a few things.

The idea of doing that is enough to make him want to hurl, but the alternative option is enough to make him want to shove a stake through his own heart. For the first time in his life, he will confess to a girl. He'll confess that he needs her, more than anyone. He'll confess that he wants her to stay here at home with him.

"Kon, seriously shut up. I think it would truly disturb Ichigo to discover you taped to the toilet. It might bring him bad memories. That's the only reason you're not already there. I'm leaving because I'm not needed here. Like Ichigo, I have a strong desire to protect. If I'm not needed here, I'll be sent somewhere that I am needed. It's as simple as that." Rukia manages to say it as though she means it, even though it's ripping up her insides.

"Somebody got to you, didn't they? Who was it?" Kon asks suspiciously. This just does not sound like his usual nee-san.

Rukia's eyes widen at Kon's perceptiveness.

"I don't know what you mean," Rukia grumbles.

"My usual nee-san would know that Ichigo is useless without her." Kon says with more conviction. Rukia blushes. That had been what _she_ had thought until she had been grilled by Rangiku-san.

_Flashback_

"_What are you doing with that boy anyways?" Rangiku-san snaps at her._

"_What do you mean?" Rukia had asked, wide eyed and surprised._

"_It's not as though he needs your help doing his job as a Shinigami, so why are you still here with him?" Rangiku-san had clarified. _

"_He doesn't need me?" Rukia had asked, still quite shocked._

"_It's you isn't it? You can't stand not being around him, even if you are messing up the normal flow of his life, whatever normalcy is left of it due to you anyways," Rangiku-san had said. Her goal had been to make Rukia confess, but her words had the opposite effect on Rukia._

"_I hadn't even realized that…I truly thought he still needed me here," Rukia had said sadly, before walking away, leaving Rangiku-san open mouthed and worried. She hadn't meant to push Rukia away from Ichigo, she just thought it was high time they get together._

_Rukia had been unaware of all of this as she had pondered Rangiku-san's words and realized she was right, Ichigo really doesn't need her anymore. Rukia loves him, but that isn't enough to stay and screw with his life. She always thought he loved her, and she figures she'll only stick around if Ichigo himself requests it._

_When she's nearly home, she changes her mind and she decides not to put the burden of her decision on Ichigo. She'll simply start packing and prepare to leave. She'll find it next to impossible to leave him, but if that's what will make him happier, then she'll have no othe choice but to leave._

_End Flashback._

Rukia sighs. Kon is still staring at her and she glares back at him.

"There is nothing to tell." Rukia says to Kon. Ichigo hops down from the roof and goes to get something for his confrontation with Rukia.

"Please don't leave, nee-san!" Kon starts bawling. Rukia rolls her eyes.

"You don't care at all about Ichigo's happiness," Rukia tells him in a low voice.

"Neither do you if you are going to leave him!" Kon responds instantly, earning a kick to the head.

"Don't you _ever_ accuse me of not caring about Ichigo! Problem is, I care way too much." Rukia says in a defeated voice. Kon suddenly feels like he has gained new understanding.

"It's hard for you to be here and in love with him without ever acting on it, isn't it?" Kon asks sympathetically. "He has the same problem, you know." Kon tells her, and Rukia glares at him.

"I'm willing to bet you've never heard him say that, so I'll just take that as your opinion, which doesn't count for much when we're talking about Ichigo's life here." Rukia informs the stuffed animal who cries at her words.

"Way to make me feel insignificant!" Kon says dejectedly.

"Where is Ichigo anyways? I thought I sensed his reiatsu around here before, but I haven't seen him anywhere." Rukia tells Kon. "Now I don't sense him nearby either." She tells him as she concentrates. She can feel it, Ichigo isn't that far away from the house, but he certainly isn't at home.

"I'm not sure," Kon says, with confusion. He had been so sure that Ichigo had been nearby.

Rukia's spirit phone rings suddenly, and Rukia answers it to find Ichigo on the other end asking her to meet him, and he gives her the coordinates. Rukia sighs as she grabs her bag. She'll hide it before she meets with him and then she'll tell him that she's leaving.

"Kon, you and I will probably not see each other for awhile…take care." Rukia tells him softly, and Kon busts into endless tears.

_At the park_

Ichigo sits in the grass and studies the rabbits hopping around. They appear to be mating. The growing population is being blamed on people who released their pet rabbits into the wild. Rabbits multiply very quickly. Ichigo knows how much Rukia loves rabbits, and he hopes they're still around when she gets here.

Ichigo nervously hides a bouquet of red roses with baby's breath that he bought for her behind his back, and he hopes he won't look too ridiculous holding them. It's the only ammunition he has besides trying to touch or kiss her to keep her quiet long enough for him to tell her how he feels. Ichigo bites his lip.

He realizes he's faced fights with very powerful espada with a lot more calm than what he has now for his confession with Rukia. He closes his eyes for a moment and blushes at the look he imagines will appear on her face when he thrusts the flowers at her. He figures he should stay sitting since his legs are way too shaky to be standing for this, they feel like jelly. His heart races as he waits for her.

With each moment that passes as he waits for her to appear, he grows more and more anxious and he thinks that this must be the most unnerving part of all. Ichigo has so many doubts about his rash plan, but it was the best he could come up with, considering she had already been packing and was probably just one sayonara away from walking out of his life for as long as he lived in the living world, since there would be no way she could ever avoid him in Soul Society.

He knows he wants her with him no matter which place he happens to be residing.

Ichigo once again wonders why he has to wait in agony and worry about how all of this will play out while she takes her sweet time getting here.

Ichigo lets his gaze trail to the happy rabbits, which are still in sight, and are still mating. His eyebrow raises at that. He wonders what Rukia would say if she could see how much these rabbits are going at it. He feels himself blushing, and he feels like his throbbing veins are going to pop from his skin if she keeps him waiting much longer.

He knows he should spot her the moment she comes into his view, since he's facing the direction she should arrive from.

He tries to imagine everything that could possibly go wrong, and when he's gotten himself so freaked out he's ready to explode, she suddenly comes into view, walking very slowly as she looks right at him. Ichigo wonders why she's dragging her feet, and he suddenly realizes that she doesn't really want to go. She had said earlier that he didn't need her. His breath quickens as she draws closer, and to say his heart is pounding quickly would be an understatement.

It feels more like there's a jackhammer in his chest than a beating heart. She is finally standing in front of him, and Ichigo hopes she hasn't spotted the flowers yet, since her gaze seems to be focused on his face, as though she's taking a mental picture.

"Sit down with me Rukia." Ichigo tells her. Rukia looks a bit surprised by that request, but she sits facing him and stares at his face for a moment.

"Ichigo-" Rukia starts to try to tell him she's leaving, but what he does next stops her words altogether. Ichigo has whipped out a bouquet of red roses and they're breathtakingly beautiful. Rukia has never gotten flowers like this before and all she can do is stare as a strange noise comes out of her throat that sounds almost like a gasp, but with a questioning note behind it.

"I'm sorry I couldn't get something that didn't pale in comparison to you." Ichigo mutters feeling more stupid than ever in his life since she hasn't accepted the roses yet, she's just staring at them like she can't believe her eyes.

"Huh?" Rukia finally says as she looks at Ichigo's blushing face and the roses.

Ichigo doesn't know how he was able get out the corny line he'd come up with while waiting for her, but he feels more awkward than ever, now that he's said it. He feels like his face is on fire from how completely embarrassing this is. Rukia is still staring at the roses with her mouth gaped open and Ichigo thrusts them closer towards her.

"Do you know what the symbolism behind red roses is?" Ichigo asks, still mortified. Rukia just stares at him without giving him any indication as to whether or not she knows, and so Ichigo decides to explain it anyways so that she has no doubts. "Red roses are given to someone that you are in love with." Ichigo explains.

Rukia just gawks at him and the flowers, but she suddenly takes them from him and inhales their scent as she looks up at him with shocked eyes.

"In love with?" Rukia echoes in a whisper as she stares at him. She wonders if she's having some sort of heavenly dream right now, since she's never felt so much like she was floating in her whole entire life.

"Yeah. Not only that, I need you to stay with me, so that I don't lose my heart." Ichigo whispers, looking away. Rukia's gasp pulls his gaze towards her. He is shocked to see tears in her eyes. He remembers seeing them before, and they always made him want to do something proactive to take her tears away.

"You need me?" Rukia asks next, as a tear rolls down her face. Ichigo scoots over to sit next to her and he timidly puts his arm around her.

"You keep me strong, you keep me balanced, and you make me happy." Ichigo tells her in an aching voice. "Tell me you'll never leave me."

Rukia stares into his eyes and reaches her hand up to grasp the hand of the arm that is around her and she squeezes his hand tightly.

"I'll never leave you Ichigo." Rukia whispers in a light voice as another tear spills down her cheek.

They sit there, with his arm around her like that for close to a half hour quietly, enjoying the bond, when Rukia finally notices the rabbits. She smiles broadly at how cute they are, and then she sees what Ichigo has been seeing then do since he's been here waiting for her. She blushes.

"They've been at it like that for the whole time I've been sitting here," Ichigo says in an amused voice.

_Why do you think they're my favorite animal, Ichigo? It's my fervent hope that we are exactly like those frisky rabbits over there. They know how to have a good time._

Ichigo looks at her face, and he perfectly reads her thoughts before he blushes furiously.

_Oh we will be, I promise._

Rukia sees Ichigo's silent promise and can practically hear it in her head. She lays her head on his shoulder.

_Damn straight! We'll be like rabbits!_


	43. As Requested: Proposal

**A/N-I had a request to do a proposal story between Ichigo and Rukia and this is what I came up with. This is dedicated to the reader that requested it, please enjoy!**

_As Requested: Proposal_

Ichigo rethinks his plan, and he doesn't think it has any flaws. He and Rukia have been an official couple for a year, and since he can't stand the idea of ever being apart from her, he has decided to propose to her, and make their relationship completely official.

He bought two things in order to propose. A small crystal rabbit and a beautiful diamond ring that wasn't too flashy, but was a quality diamond and its size was nothing to complain about, even though it's not a large rock. He slips the ring onto the rabbit's left ear and then he carefully wraps it into its rather small box.

He slips the box in his pocket and goes downstairs to wait for Rukia who was in the shower while he had wrapped her gift. He has not told his family about his plans for fear they'll spoil the surprise. His father grins at him when he walks into the family room.

"Got a date with Rukia-chan?" Isshin asks with a huge smile.

"Yeah. She should be down here a few minutes." Ichigo tells him.

"Make sure she has a good time," Isshin tells Ichigo. He has come to truly love his son's girlfriend and will insanely happy when the two finally tie the knot.

Ichigo ignores his father and walks into the kitchen to sit and wait for Rukia in peace and quiet. He imagines what life will be like when she is his wife. He figures it probably won't be all that different from how things are now, besides the verbal and legal commitment.

Rukia tends to take control of a lot of situations, and though it bugs Ichigo sometimes, he really doesn't mind letting her have the driver seat. It makes guesswork practically nonexistent, and when Rukia runs things, everything generally works out very smoothly.

She's likes to keep him guessing in the bedroom, something that Ichigo loves and hates at the same time. He had refused to let her put the ball gag in his mouth that she purchased, _at first_, but he had nodded his head appreciatively at the sexy leather cowgirl outfit that she had bought to wear, complete with a sexy cowgirl hat.

The deal was she'd only wear the outfit if he wore the gag. Ichigo had reluctantly given in, and he blushes every time he thinks of the way she had climbed on top of him and told him that he would make her very happy that night.

She had been extremely bossy that night and she seemed to get really turned on by the fact that he had been gagged. Ichigo wonders if he should find that fact disturbing rather than sexy as hell.

He willingly lets her put the ball gag on him nowadays though, because it always means heart pounding sex with her totally in charge. She excels at being in charge there too, and she still says things in bed that make his eyes pop out of his head.

The first time she had ever startled him in bed was when she looked at him with a straight face and looked at him very seriously and had said that thing.

_I want to sit on your face._

Ichigo hadn't known how to respond. He had been so shocked he could only let out a loud breath with a hoarse questioning sound to go with it. His eyes had very nearly popped out of his head. Even now he blushes as he recalls that moment.

He had never in a million years expected to hear those words come from her lips. He had finally nodded his agreement to her and they had done some really kinky things that night.

He wanted to do everything with her. She is exciting, she is dangerous, and above all she makes him blissfully happy.

Ichigo looks up as the woman of his thoughts enters the room in a pink and blue dress. She looks up at him with a soft smile.

"You ready to go?" She asks him happily.

"Yes, come on." Ichigo tells her. He takes her hand and leads her out of the house.

_At the Gourmet Desserts Restaurant_

Rukia eyes the triple fudge chocolate cake with barely concealed excitement.

"Are we really going to eat that?" She asks him with her eyes sparkling in happiness. Ichigo grins at her. She's taken on his love for chocolate over the past year.

"Hell yeah." Ichigo tells her with a firm nod. Rukia smiles with anticipation.

Ichigo had already ordered, and then he walked her over to the display case so she could see what he had ordered for them. He takes her back to their seats.

"Thanks, what a wonderful idea to come here!" Rukia tells him with shining eyes. Dating Ichigo has been better than she could have ever imagined. The moment that they had started dating, she had felt a weight fall from her shoulders and she has far more patience with him now than she did before they became a couple.

"I thought you would enjoy it," Ichigo tells her.

When their desserts arrive, Rukia's eyes widen at the extreme chocolate dessert in front of her and then glances at Ichigo to see him watching her with loving eyes. She smiles at him and picks up her spoon.

"It's so good!" Rukia moans when she swallows the first bite of her heavenly cake. Ichigo looks satisfied and he digs into his own cake.

When they leave there, Ichigo takes her for a long walk until they reach a grassy hill that has a spectacular view of the sunset. He sits in the grass and pulls her into his arms on his lap, enjoying the feel of her being there.

"It's so beautiful here," Rukia whispers with a smile as Ichigo nuzzles her neck. She slides her arms around him and cuddles with him for a bit. When the sun starts to set, Rukia looks at the scene in awe, and Ichigo quickly draws the box from his pocket and takes a deep breath before he finally speaks to her.

"Rukia, I have something for you," Ichigo tells her. Rukia glances over and sees the box and smiles at him.

"Really, for me? It's not even my birthday!" Rukia says with excitement. Ichigo grins and nods at her, and then he hands her the gift and waits nervously for her to open it.

Her hands quickly undo the wrapping and when she opens the box, she doesn't first spot the ring, but she adores the rabbit. Ichigo clears his throat though.

"Rukia, I want to be with you forever. Will you make me happy for all time by marrying me?" Ichigo whispers. Rukia sees the ring then, and her eyes mist into unshed tears. She turns her head to look at him.

"Oh yes, Ichigo!" Rukia says before a tear makes its way down her face. Ichigo kisses her and she kisses him back. He reaches around and plucks the ring off of the rabbit's ear and she offers him her finger. He slips it on and she stares at her hand in amazement.

"I love you Rukia." Ichigo whispers softly as he enjoys the sight of his ring on her finger.

"I love you too." Rukia whispers back, before they kiss again.

_Finally._

That's all Ichigo can think as he kisses the woman of his dreams.


	44. Phone Friend

**A/N- this is supposed to take place before Aizen's death. Whether or not the HM arc happened is irrelevant for the purposes of this story, Enjoy!**

Phone Friend

Ichigo scowls in aggravation. Rukia has been spending a lot of time on her spirit phone lately, and she won't tell him who it is she's been talking to. Rukia always finds privacy for these calls, and Ichigo wonders if she's been talking to some guy. He'd be shocked if he knew who she was on the phone with, but she has no desire to tell him about it.

Rukia has been having conversations on the phone with a friend of hers from Soul Society. Someone that Ichigo would no doubt be surprised by. It wasn't something she'd ever felt compelled to discuss with him. The person on the other end was Hinamori Momo.

They have been friends for many years, ever since Hinamori caught Rukia teasing Renji about his horrible kidou skills. She had joined in with the teasing and the two had become fast friends. When they used to confide in each other in the past, Momo would always talk about how amazing and wondrous Captain Aizen was, and before Kaien had died, Rukia would gush about him in a similar manner to Momo.

After Kaien died, Momo still gushed about Aizen, and Rukia mainly did a lot of listening, though once in awhile she would admit to her friend how guilty she felt for her part in Kaien-dono's death.

Momo had been the first person outside of her division that she had told about her assigned mission in Karakura Town, right before she had met Ichigo.

When everything had gone down with Rukia being arrested, and Momo losing her mind from Aizen's supposed death, and then the revelation of him being a perpetrator of high treason against Soul Society, they hadn't spoken for a few months.

When Momo finally recovered enough for them to finally talk again, Rukia felt very concerned for her friend's mental welfare. Momo was inclined to believe that Aizen had good reason for his actions when they had first spoken again.

Very recently however, she suddenly changed. Rukia still doesn't know precisely why it happened, but her friend seems to finally have come to grip with reality in regards to Aizen Sousuke.

The discussions they have over the phone now are totally different from the discussions they had twenty years ago, ten years ago, and even a year ago. Now Rukia has disclosed only to Momo just how much she is in love with Kurosaki Ichigo, and Momo talks about how she wants to play a key part in Aizen's downfall.

Momo has been practicing much higher level kidou spells, and her ability to cast them without the need to chant. Her motivation now is even greater than what it was when she simply wanted to be in the Fifth Division of the Thirteen Protection Squads. She wants Aizen to see her look of hatred as she helps to bring him down, hopefully to his death.

They say there is a very thin line between love and hate. They also say that Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Rukia believes both of these statements apply very strongly to her friend who feels very hurt and betrayed at Aizen's illegal decisions and actions. Particularly that he stabbed her, when she had never dreamed of hurting him up until recently.

Rukia has been spending more and more time on the phone with Momo, and she has no idea how jealous she is making Ichigo in the process.

There have been a few times where he purposely walked by her when she was on the phone, trying to overhear her discussion, but she always noticed him and piped down when he was nearby. The only thing Ichigo knows for sure is that she definitely has discussions about Aizen.

This greatly bothers him. If she wants to talk about plotting Aizen's death, then he would happily embrace such a discussion. He doubts Rukia even knows how much Ichigo wants to cut the heart out of Aizen's chest for the pain he put Rukia through.

Ichigo is fairly certain the person on the other end of the phone is Renji, and Ichigo doesn't want Rukia to depend on Renji more than she depends on him. Particularly in the fight against Aizen. He has also noticed that the phone conversations have been lasting longer and longer.

He wonders why she won't tell him about the details of her discussions, and why she always stops talking whenever he gets near her when she's on the phone.

Ichigo fumes angrily when he notices that after a week of spending every night on the phone for well over an hour, she's now been on the phone for two and a half hours, as she's on the roof of his neighbor's house. He's sick and tired of it. He pops out of his body and jumps out the window and lands in front of her as she sits on the phone. Her eyes widen.

"It's Ichigo!" Rukia says into her phone. Whatever response she's given makes her blush furiously.

"Who are you talking to?" Ichigo asks sullenly.

"I couldn't possibly do that!" Rukia says into the phone in a horrified voice. Ichigo is getting aggravated. He crosses his arms. He watches as Rukia gives a nervous laugh into the phone and then she hangs up.

"I asked you a question, you know." Ichigo mutters at her, pinning her with a hurt glare.

"I was on the phone with a friend." Rukia says breezily as she pockets her phone.

"Why won't you tell me who it is?" Ichigo asks next. Rukia glances up at him.

"I don't want to tell you though," Rukia tells him softly.

She doesn't want to have to explain to him about the discussions she has with Momo and she definitely doesn't want him knowing that she confides in Momo. She wishes she could talk about her feelings for him to him, but she finds that task next to impossible. She had been shocked when Momo told her on the phone to kiss Ichigo. That's why she had responded that she couldn't possibly do that.

"Why not? It's Renji, isn't it?" Ichigo asks forlornly. Rukia glances at him with a surprised look. She hadn't even considered the possibility that he might think she was on the phone with Renji, even though the assumption makes complete sense, considering their friendship.

"It's not Renji." Rukia says softly, and now it's Ichigo's turn to be surprised.

_If it's not Renji, then who is it?_

Ichigo studies her face carefully. He sighs and lets it go until the next day when she spends _three_ whole hours on the phone.

Ichigo's anger gets the best of him today. Now that he has spent all day wondering who in the hell she's having long phone conversations with, and sweating at the fact that it could be a man he doesn't know about, he had let his temper heat up to a rapid boiling point.

She's not on the neighbor's roof this time, she's sitting in front of his front door. Ichigo pops out of his body and hops down to the ground outside of his home and uses shunpo to appear in front of her immediately. He yanks the phone out of her hands. Rukia's eyes widen in complete shock as he puts the phone up to his ears.

"Who in the hell is this?" Ichigo demands angrily.

"Kurosaki Ichigo?" A light and feminine voice asks him. Ichigo's eyes widen in complete shock. _It's not a man!_

"Yeah, who is this?" Ichigo asks next.

He never hears the answer. Rukia clobbers him in the stomach so hard that the phone drops from his hands and she catches it gracefully. She puts the phone back to her ear.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow, I have to teach this rude asshole a lesson." Rukia tells her friend before she slips the phone in her pocket and glares at Ichigo who is still not fully recovered from her savage hit.

"Rukia…" Ichigo says weakly to her furious expression.

"Just who in the hell do you think you are? What ever made you think you had the right to rip my phone out of my hands and interrupt a private conversation between me and my friend?" Rukia asks with venom in her voice. She cannot believe how he just violated her privacy. Ichigo feels a bit cornered at her angry expression.

"I'm sorry-" Ichigo starts to say but Rukia cuts him off.

"I want to know why you behaved that way. What was your _reason_?" Rukia asks softly, with her eyes flashing angrily.

Ichigo stays silent, staring at her mutinously. He refuses to tell her he did it because he was jealous. No way will he admit that. Rukia takes a step towards him, and he quickly takes a much bigger step back.

"I shouldn't have done that," Ichigo finally whispers when she keeps staring, not blinking and not looking away.

"That's true, but that doesn't explain _why_ you did it. I want to know right now why and I want to know now." Rukia tells him, not adding the rest of what she's thinking.

_I'll force you to tell me if I have to._

"Um." Ichigo replies like a dolt.

"Time's up." Rukia says in an unforgiving voice. She pounces on him and gets him into a headlock in no time where she starts rubbing her fist quickly and viciously against his skull.

"Ow! Rukia stop!" Ichigo screeches. Rukia doesn't stop.

"Telling me why is the only way to stop me!" Rukia shouts as she goes at his head even more furiously with her fist.

Ichigo feels like his hair will be rubbed off He doesn't notice his father looking out the front door window grinning at them when he finally gives into Rukia's request.

"I did it because I was jealous! You happy now?" Ichigo yells loudly. Rukia's hand stills and Ichigo quickly squirms away from her, completely red in the face.

"You were jealous?" Rukia repeats dubiously. Ichigo nods. "Over me?" Rukia asks next. Ichigo nods again. She watches as his face doesn't lose its red color. "Really?" Rukia squeaks in awe. Ichigo stands and dusts off his robes.

"Yeah." Ichigo says it with his eyes cast towards the ground.

"You idiot!" Rukia screeches as she leaps on him. Ichigo is so stunned he can only stare at her as she flies onto him and then knocks him off balance only to send them crashing to the ground with her in his arms.

"Ow." Ichigo groans from the pain of his head smacking the pavement.

He forgets the pain when she brings her lips to his in a shy yet passionate kiss.

"Don't be an idiot. You don't have any reason to act like that." Rukia whispers after she pulls away. Ichigo nods wordlessly. He doesn't have to ask why, it's because she loves him.

_And I love her._

_The next day…_

They agree to keep how they got together a secret from their friends, it's a bit too embarrassing for both of them. Rukia only confides in Momo about the way things really went down, and Ichigo is no longer jealous over her phone friend.


	45. Share What's In My Heart

_Share What's In My Heart_

Ichigo is so terrified he can't make a noise. Rukia's eyes are wide and the clarity is fading in them fast. Ichigo forgets about anyone else that may be nearby as Rukia's eyes meet his

"Ichigo." Her voice sounds so weak. He wants to pick her up, but with the way she's injured, that could be the end for her. She had been very nearly cut in half, and it was a miracle that she maintained the strength to be able to say his name.

Silent tears started rolling down his face and he leaned in very close so that her face was directly in front of his. He didn't notice that another enemy was poised to strike, since his focus was completely on her. She's trying to speak but her voice isn't making it out of her mouth. She can see Ichigo's tears, and she knows it has to be really bad to bring him to that.

She's dodged death so many times, but this instance doesn't really feel like something that can be recovered from. She can't feel anything below her chest, and what she does feel hurts painfully, but she forces the words out, because she's terrified they will be her last. The look in his eyes is amazing. She feels blessed that she got to at least see this look in his eyes before she goes. Those are her final thoughts before she is finally able to say what she wanted.

"Now I can leave my heart here with you." Rukia manages to rasp out in a barely audible voice. Ichigo's tears stream down harder and as her eyes are closing, he barely catches a look of fear in her eyes. Ichigo reaches for Zangetsu, but he's a moment too late. He's just been stabbed in the back by an unseen opponent. He pitches forward falling next to Rukia, but not exactly cursing himself for his lack of focus. His will to live or fight wasn't exactly strong right now.

After all, his total source of inner strength, just said what sounded like her last words to him. If only he had told her the truth and hadn't been so stubborn. If only he had told her how much he loved her. Ichigo's thoughts fade into blackness as the one who attacked him strikes again. This is the moment the enemy is defeated. Captain Unohana and Lieutenant Isane have arrived, and immediately go to work on healing the two warriors.

_One month and four days later…_

Rukia notices it's evening as she knocks timidly on Captain Ukitake's door. When she'd been informed that he wished to speak to her, she'd hurried to meet him, since his health had been particularly bad this week. She hears him call out permission for her to enter, and when she does enter, she's relieved to see him giving her his typical fatherly smile.

She'd finally been allowed to leave Fourth Division's General Relief Station today, she'd been seriously injured in the winter war. She knew Ichigo was alive and fairing well in the real world, she'd made sure Isane had told her that much when she'd regained consciousness under the watchful eye of Captain Unohana & her lieutenant. She wasn't really surprised the captain wanted to see her despite his health, considering she herself had barely escaped death. He was just that kind of person.

"You look well, Kuchiki! I'm glad to see you're back. Captain Unohana said that you're well enough to return and be put back to work, although you're supposed to take it easy for awhile." Captain Ukitake leans forward in his chair. "Even though I'd like to say that's the only reason I called you here, the truth is that you're being given an assignment immediately. Although the orders are being conveyed through me, they're actually Commander Yamamoto's orders." Ukitake said with a smile. Rukia looks at him, surprise etched clearly into her features.

"What is my assignment?" Rukia asks him, as her eyes widen in surprise.

"Tonight you go to Karakura Town. You are to be the official partner of Shinigami Representative Kurosaki Ichigo. This mission is to be served indefinitely, and you may have some reports to make, but in general, this is to be considered a long term arrangement. You'll be at his side until the day he leaves Earth for good. You must also inform Kurosaki-kun that he is now the official Shinigami representative for the Thirteenth Division. " Ukitake manages to say with a grin and a sad look at the same time. "I'm certain these are orders you can follow happily. We'll have a small going away party for you in one hour. You're scheduled to leave so that you arrive in Karakura town at midnight." Ukitake finishes quietly. Rukia's shock is not lost on her superior, but her happiness doesn't elude him either.

"Yes, Sir!" Rukia says confidently. "How can he claim to be part of the Thirteenth Division, though?"

"You can't very well be the official partner of someone who isn't a part of your division now, can you?" Captain Ukitake says with a smile. "I'll be at your party. I'm just going to lay down and rest for a bit first. I'm sure there are people you want to share the news with." Captain Ukitake says, still smiling.

"Of course, thank you very much, Captain Ukitake!" Rukia exclaims. She bows before taking her leave. There are things she needs to get from the Kuchiki house if she's to live with Ichigo for the rest of his life, and preparations that she needs to make as well.

Her smile is so wide, it feels like her face might break. Living with Ichigo sounded like a dream she'd never be able to attain again, once the battle with Aizen and the arrancar had finished, but now she hums a happy tune.

_Back with Ichigo…wait, why is my heart pounding this fast? Will his pound just as fast once he realizes I'm back to stay? Will I ever see that look in his eyes when I'm not on the brink of death?_

It doesn't matter what daunting thoughts cross through her mind, she keeps humming, because no matter what, nothing else matters as long as she is with her precious Ichigo.

"Crap, I'm late for my own party!" Rukia mutters as she flash steps her way to the Thirteenth Division Headquarters. Nemu had promised Rukia the new and improved memory modifier, one that was certain to work even on the sensitive souls of Karakura Town.

The one for normal humans had stopped working on half the town months ago. The new one would work even on Inoue, Chad, & Ishida, if the situation required it. Nemu was even able to provide her with her gigai and chappy gikongan then and there. Nemu also promised to make sure Rukia received news when new items for earth use were developed, and that she would be sent papers for her votes in the Women's Shinigami Association.

After ordering a chappy top of the line hollow detector, as well as a perfume that had recently been named "Sparkles" which was a scent that made humans instantly like your gigai. It's mainly to protect the temporary souls that enter the gigai when the Shinigami is battling. Rukia made sure a bottle of that would be sent to her twice a year.

After taking way too much time with ordering supplies through Nemu, Rukia had gone to the Kuchiki mansion and gotten several necessary objects for her daily life with Ichigo. When she had gone to inform her brother or her orders, he had told her he'd already been informed, while she was still under the care of the Fourth Division. He could tell she was happy about her assignment, even so, it made him sad that she may not be around for a long while.

She remembered the gift he had given her. It was a beautiful painting of the Kuchiki mansion surrounded in snow and ice like it had been when she had practiced her shikai there. Rukia had ignored all protocol and hugged her brother fiercely. He was surprised, but he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her back. He also didn't offer her one last lecture on the proper behavior of a person who held the name Kuchiki.

"Make sure you take care of yourself." He had said softly as they had held one another.

"Thank you so much, Byakuya ni-sama." Rukia had said as a tear of happiness slowly made its way down her face. Her brother had quickly become a reliable ally in her life, ever since Ichigo saved her from the execution. Ichigo had taken all the negative that surrounded her life and filled it with positive, even though he wore a scowl the whole time he was doing it. The way he brought so much light into other people's worlds seemed to be a magical quality that only men like Ichigo and Kaien possessed.

It was unfortunate these kind of men were so scarce that they were practically an extinct breed of men. Rukia has dealt with many different kinds of men in her many decades of living and Ichigo is by far the most amazing man she's ever had the luck of encountering.

What's more he'd given her looks of love in their time together. This makes Rukia feel special in a good way that she's never felt before. Her heart calls out to him. _Ichigo._

Rukia snaps out of her memory and opens the door to the Thirteenth Division Headquarters, and she is shocked to see so many faces besides the usual in her own division. Her brother is absent. That's okay though since they've already shared an emotional goodbye.

Everyone yells cheers and raises their glass as she walks in. Rukia flushes, and laughter fills the room. She was soon surrounded in a sea of well wishers and friends who were promising to visit her on their cherished days off.

She didn't even notice that Kiyone had slipped a glass in her hand as she had entered the room and kept putting a new alcoholic beverage in her hand once she'd finished a drink. She also did not notice how quickly she was finishing her drinks. Her nerves were going nuts just because she hadn't seen Ichigo since she'd told him she was giving him her heart.

Rukia knows she wouldn't want to leave her heart with anybody other than Ichigo and that she doesn't regret her words, but it was still making her insides twist at the idea of facing the truth with him.

What if he wants an explanation for her words? Rukia finishes the drink in her hands quickly with those thoughts and ironically turns to smile gratefully at Kiyone when the girl slips another drink into her hands immediately. Ichigo is the cause of all her concern, as usual. _Some things just never change._

She didn't have to be concerned about Renji, since she'd already spoken to him. Renji had already promised to visit often, plus he had been given the duty of being the one to bring her reports from Soul Society and to retrieve reports from her for Soul Society. He had also stuck a small farewell present into her hand, which she had stuck in her pocket, forgotten at the moment.

Nobody mentioned anything when she started reacting to all the alcohol she'd been drinking, in fact a few knowing Shinigami smile in satisfaction. Rukia rarely allowed herself to get this inebriated, but when she did, she was known to be brutally honest, and sometimes even flirtatious.

She had been known to make Renji's face turn as red as his hair when she'd had too much too drink. Not that she'd ever taken it so far that he could actually enjoy it. He was a moron. He really needed to accept that the foundation of their relationship had been set long ago and would never morph into anything else. He's family. You don't make out with family, you tease them. Hence, she'd never felt guilty when drunkenly teasing him in the past. He'd just have to get over his pathetic perverted urges and face the facts.

Rukia knows what's been on his mind for several decades, but he's never said anything out loud to her. As long as he keeps that much restraint, she won't tell him what a pathetic excuse for a brother she considers him to be with thoughts like that about her. Ichigo had been a blessing in more ways than one. Renji had instinctively accepted that Rukia's feelings for him were on a different level than her feelings for him, _family._

Rukia looks in surprise as her glass is empty. Had she finished that drink _that _quickly? Her confusion is gone as the empty glass is pulled from her hand and replaced with a new full glass. Kiyone to the rescue again.

"Sorry, that last glass must have had more ice than liquid." Kiyone gushes innocently. Rukia's buzzed enough that she doesn't even realize that the girl is feigning innocence.

Rukia was thoroughly embarrassed when a much more inebriated Nemu presented her with a going away gift as well. She informed Rukia loudly that the gift wasn't only for her, but for Ichigo too, and that Matsumoto had also helped to pick it out. That got everyone's attention.

Rukia had opened it to find a white silk teddy inside, and Rukia had blushed fiercely and some whistles had gone up in the room too. Matsumoto grabs it back from her since she was unnoticed just behind Rukia, and Rukia can hear some guys hooting. Matsumoto takes the box and walks over to the front door where Kuchiki's bags sat. She stuck the little box inside Rukia's bag and grinned. Rukia had been so mortified, but that moment, Ukitake appeared in front of her. Everyone became quiet to listen.

"I know you'll take your mission seriously, but the town Shinigami that's been stationed in Karakura town since the Winter War ended won't be ordered to come home until tomorrow. So take it easy tonight, Kuchiki. You'll be sorely missed around here while you're on this mission, and as much as I hate to say it, your time of departure has arrived." Everyone starts cheering and Kiyone slips a little shot glass in Rukia's hand.

It was at that moment that everyone raised their glass, and Rukia raised hers in response. A large cheer went up as Rukia drained her glass, and everyone else toasted her as well. Hanatarou steps forward to carry her bags and a resounding cheer follows her as she exits the headquarters. Now that she's outside with only Hanatarou, she realizes just how much she'd had to drink. Rukia lets out a little drunken giggle and Hanatarou smiles at her.

"Rukia san, I'm sure Ichigo san will be happy to see you, especially since the last time he saw you, he wasn't sure you'd live." Hanatarou says with a smile. "I'll miss my talks with you though. I also have something for you, Rukia san." Hanatarou pulls out a little bottle of pills. "These are pills for after a long night or a tough fight. If you or Ichigo-san take one of these before falling asleep, you'll wake up feeling completely rested and ready for the day. I'll be happy to send you more when you run out, just tell Renji san, and I'll send them to the living world with Renji san." Hanatarou says. Rukia smiles and accepts the bottle thankfully.

"Thanks Hanatarou. I'm sure these will come in handy." Rukia says as she sticks them into her pocket. When she does, she feels the present in there that Renji had given her earlier. Rukia smiles as she pulls it out of her pocket. She squeezes it with her hands as she wonders what her long time friend got for her as a farewell gift. Hanatarou is amazed she can teeter and totter so much and still not fall. She opens the little box to find a little clip with a chain and a rabbit attached. She could connect this to a purse, phone, or her clothing if she wanted.

Rukia smiles and squeezes it tight in her hands. No matter how much she anticipates this mission, it's always hard to leave behind a best friend that you love like a brother. She's sure this is why her brother agreed that Renji should be the one to report back and forth. When she and Hanatarou reach the Senkai Gate, she takes her bags from him, trips over her own feet, and barely catches herself in time, and then she smiles.

"Even if I did drink too much, I'll have to manage the rest for myself." Rukia says ruefully. "Thanks again, Hanatarou, see you around!" Rukia says before disappearing on her way to the living world. Hanatarou laughs as she stumbles her way in. He looks at the Senkai gate and even though he can't see her anymore, he still waves goodbye to her. Then his expression turns sad.

He adores Rukia-san, but he's never been foolish enough to think for one minute that she looked at him as anything more than a friend. He had begun to adore her even though he'd known from the moment he started that there was someone else in her heart. He sighs wistfully before heading back to his own division.

Ichigo had just switched off his light taken his shirt off. He was exhausted from finishing his homework and sunk into his bed after removing his shirt. It took way too long to finish his homework. Too many thoughts kept slowing him down. He still hadn't received any news at all on Rukia. For this reason, it had been difficult to sleep or concentrate, ever since he'd last seen her over a month ago.

His lack of sleep has been to blame for his miserable attitude, well that and not knowing how the hell Rukia was doing. It seemed to him that Soul Society didn't respect him enough. How _dare_ they keep news from him about Rukia, he was the one who cared about her most anyways.

He was even considering asking Urahara to make him a path to Soul Society so that he could go and see for himself whether or not she was alive or dead. Well he'd actually asked two weeks ago, and Urahara had told him he'd be happy to help, but that Ichigo would have to stand by and wait for one more month before busting into Soul Society by force.

Ichigo had glared at the man but had nodded wordlessly. No amount of harassment would make him change his mind, he could be more stubborn than Ichigo if the situation required it. Ichigo scowls at his ceiling. By now they should know what her chances for living were, and they were purposely keeping him in the dark. Ichigo lets out what sounds like a growl as he punches the bed with his fist. He had also gotten so sick of Kon's chatter that he'd removed the pill from the stuffed animal and stored it away in his desk drawer. Sado had pulled him aside today.

"Why are you being so distant with everyone?" Sado had asked. Ichigo had stared at him surprised for a long minute before answering.

"I still don't have any word on Rukia's condition. It's driving me crazy." Ichigo had confided only in Sado, and Sado had immediately understood the weight of Ichigo's words.

"I understand. I know how you feel about her, but everyone is worried about you. Especially Inoue." Sado says as he inspects Ichigo's hopelessly naïve face. "I get it though. She was badly injured and not knowing has to be stressful, given the way you feel about her." Sado says.

Ichigo shoots Sado a look. The look that he's been giving everyone who speaks about Rukia that way to him. It's nobody else's damned business what his feelings are for Rukia. (at least not until the two people in question had a chance to discuss it for themselves) She's the only person with any right to comment on that, not even his close friend Sado is exempt from this. Ichigo sighs.

Usually he doesn't even have to worry about Sado intruding into his personal life. Ichigo can't really remember a time before this, if ever, that Sado had ever intruded in his personal life this way. _He was probably negatively influenced by Ishida and Inoue. _

"I'm glad you get it, but I don't really want to talk about it. I think I should discuss it with Rukia before talking to anyone else. Even you. Do me a favor and tell them all not to worry, and to just leave me alone for awhile. I don't have the patience or the energy to worry about everyone else's feelings right now. I'm too stressed to pretend to be happy when I'm a worried wreck. Even listening to someone else is too hard right now. I thought that at least Ukitake-san would get word to me on her condition by now, but I guess if Soul Society isn't under attack, reporting to me is unnecessary." Ichigo had finished in a near shout. "Forget it. I'll see you tomorrow, Sado." Ichigo said as he had flung his bag on his shoulder and headed home.

He knew he had distanced himself from his friends, but right now he just didn't care, besides Sado would not be offended. Ishida wouldn't be offended either, Ichigo was sure of that. He knows Inoue is worried about him. That's what Sado had said, but that's part of her nature. Even though she's a friend, she's the only friend he consistently feels uncomfortable around. She's too gentle. He's definitely more comfortable around people who have a tougher demeanor. Like Rukia.

He curses himself again for his actions in the past. Even though they were always so close, he'd never told her how he'd really felt. Ichigo doesn't know what he'll do if when he finally receives word about her, it's that she died. He swears that if she comes through this alive, he won't withhold anymore from her. He's going to change, damn it.

He'll force himself to remember the emptiness and pain at the thought of her being gone. His stomach tenses with pain, just like it always does at the thought of never seeing those big blue eyes ever again. He'd happily turn into a mush ball if it meant her being alive again. Ichigo had attempted many bargains with god if it meant Rukia would be healthy and alive.

_I'll hold her hand in public. I will cherish her. I'll kiss her, and tell her she's beautiful. She's the center of my entire soul, please don't take her away from me. Cut me up and slash me a million times, but don't take Rukia away from me. That's too much. I can't take this kind of torture! _

He'd forced himself to stop acting pathetic whenever he felt like he might start crying. He hadn't let himself cry since he'd woken up from that battle with his wounds partially healed. He had called Rukia's name in an achingly painful voice and from that moment on, he'd only wished to be told she were still alive.

He'd been given a day to rest in Soul Society before being sent home, more like forced. He'd expressed his desire to stay at Rukia's side at least until he knew whether or not she'd be stabilized.

Three captains had been assembled to escort him to the Senkai gate. Unohana, Zaraki, and Mayuri. Ichigo had protested alright, and that had gotten him stabbed in the legs with Mayuri's released sword as Kenpachi held Ichigo's arms.

He had then been told that he could be carried back, or he could be allowed the use of his legs to go back on his own. He was warned that if he chose anything other than the use of his legs that Zaraki would throw him over his back and carry him back to the living world. He had also been told that if he chose this route, he wouldn't have the use of his legs for three days once making it back.

Ichigo had angrily and silently acquiesced to their demand. It had been so humiliating. They had done this when they knew he wasn't still in top form. They had taken advantage of him even after he'd teamed up with them. He wonders if that was their way of reminding him he was still a kid despite his awesome spiritual power.

Ichigo briefly wonders if Toushirou has ever had to undergo such a humiliating experience at the hands of the other captains. Unohana was the only one he wasn't mad at. Her presence was the probably the reason he hadn't been more seriously harassed, at least this is what Ichigo suspects.

He sighs deeply and wonders just what Soul Society thinks about his hollow transformation. Did they think he was some kind of threat to Soul Society, or even worse, Rukia? Nobody had said anything to him in his short time there, but he had been given some strange and contemplative looks, as though they were expecting him to transform into a mindless murdering hollow.

He'd been awake when the captain had undone his bandages. Now that was something, do captains usually do such tedious work? Couldn't the lowest ranked Shinigami in Fourth Division have handled that menial task? Ichigo is sure she was checking to make sure he didn't have a hole in his chest, the mark that he'd lost his heart. They didn't have to go that far. The fear and terror in his voice as he asked about Rukia's condition should have been enough to reassure them.

So he's been doing the only thing he can do, the only thing left to him, calling with his heart, with all his might the name of the only one who could make it all better if she'd just return home, to where her heart was. _Rukia!_

Ichigo's thoughts are distracted when his window slides open from the outside. Ichigo sits up straight in bed and his eyes widen as Rukia, looking in perfect health, pops into the window frame and tosses a couple of bags onto his feet. Ichigo immediately and unthinkingly grabs them off his feet and sets them on the ground without ever taking his eyes off of her for fear she's an illusion, like a man who is lost in the desert and can only see various forms of water every where he goes. He stares up at her. Is it his imagination or is she swaying in the window?

"Rukia!" Ichigo finally exclaims in amazed and happy shock. _She's okay_! Ichigo feels the suffocating weight on his shoulders disappear. Rukia, with no grace, jumps into his room and lands on the floor. She promptly loses her balance and pitches onto his bed, right onto his lap, her face buried in his chest.

"Long time, no see, Ichigo." Rukia says with a noticeable slur, as she lifts her head from his chest and positions herself comfortably to sit next to him. Ichigo's expression of shock and then happiness is nice to see. Really nice. She smiles and winks at him. She is shocked when Ichigo suddenly grabs her into a close hug.

"Thank goodness you're okay! I've been so worried about you, nobody told me anything. How long can you stay?" Ichigo asks instantly as he reluctantly releases her from his arms, a flurry of emotions showing on his face.

"My latest assignment is an indefinite partnership in the living world with you." Rukia immediately answers with a grin and a small giggle. Ichigo's eyebrow raised at that. "Although we don't officially start work until after school tomorrow." Rukia states quite happily. "I'm also still supposed to take it easy for a couple more weeks." She's definitely slurring her words.

Ichigo scrutinizes her face. Her eyes don't seem as clear and perceptive as they normally do, plus another giggle escapes her lips. Very uncharacteristic for the stern, proper, and typical Rukia. It isn't the same kind of giggle she uses for his classmates either. _It's actually cute, and not disturbing._

"You don't seem like yourself. Why are you giggling and slurring your words?" Ichigo asks with a raised brow, even though he's fairly certain he can guess the answer. He's seen his father this way enough times to know this is a typical effect after drinking a little too much alcohol.

It's at this moment that Rukia puts her hand on his chest and smiles up at him. Ichigo's skin underneath her hand is burning with a pleasant sensation. His senses are all alert too. His whole body is tingling from her closeness, her touch, her familiarity, but most of all from the way she's affecting the beating of his heart.

"Naturally they wanted to thrown me a going away party since this is an extended mission. I may have had just a wee bit too much to drink." Rukia admits as she makes a motion with her hand indicating she only had a little bit of alcohol, with another giggle.

_Liar You probably drank enough to give a small army a buzz. _Ichigo thinks it but he doesn't say it. Even though it would be completely natural and she'd probably kick him, and he'd probably like it. Why piss her off when she's absentmindedly rubbing her fingers lightly up and down his chest and he's choking back a groan.

"I've missed you, Ichigo. A lot," Rukia says softly, but with an amazing amount of feeling. She ruins it by stretching her arms out as far as she can like a small child before going back to touching his chest.

Ichigo gathers her back into his arms to prevent the movement with her fingers that's slowly driving him insane. He's glad the blanket is covering his waist and below. He forgot about her other hand. It caresses his cheek and Ichigo's heart pounds loudly in response to that. Her hand falls after a moment and she rests it on his leg. It's just as distracting as her other actions. His conscience rumbles at him. _She's drunk. Do not let your body get out of control here._

"I'm just glad you're here. You're not allowed to put me under this kind of stress anymore. Got it?" Ichigo demands in a low husky voice as he runs his fingers through her silky hair. Rukia doesn't respond and that annoys him. He pulls away from her to find that she's fallen asleep. Ichigo sighs and lays her down in the bed, before getting up and placing her bags in the closet.

He wonders whether or not he should stick her in there too since she's in a gigai, but he discards that thought as quickly as he has it. He had sworn to himself that he wouldn't hide his feelings for her anymore. The least he can do is hold her since she's obviously exhausted.

He climbs back into bed and pulls her close in his arms. He smiles a truly happy smile when she snuggles up to him and whispers his name in her sleep. He squeezes her, enjoying the closeness. All of the anger and anxiety from minutes ago has vanished, and for the first time since the winter war, he sleeps through the night, peacefully.

Ichigo and Rukia awaken to the sound of his alarm clock, and Rukia is quite stunned (and happy) to find herself waking up in Ichigo's arms. Truth is she doesn't even remember getting here. Ichigo hits the alarm clock without even releasing her from his grasp. He opens his eyes, and realizes he feels a hundred percent better. Rukia quickly sits up. She all of a sudden remembers how his family members like to barge into his room. She stands up and looks around.

"I had some bags when I got here, didn't I?" Rukia asks Ichigo. He sleepily points towards the closet and watches as jumps over, opens the closet, and pulls out a bag. She pulls out the memory modifier deluxe, the same one she'd had when she'd come back to tell him about the arrancar.

"That thing again?" Ichigo asks with a yawn.

"Within a week I'll be expecting the new version. It will even work on our friends, should the need ever arise that we need it to." Rukia says with a smile. Ichigo stretches and sits up while he looks at her. She notices that he's not scowling nearly as often as she's used to seeing.

The expression on his face is a little unnerving. He looks so cute sitting there, and did she really sleep in his arms last night? That thought alone is enough to make her feel lightheaded.

She wonders if she should blame it on the alcohol, then she realizes she's just making excuses. She holds her breath and is unable to tear her eyes away from his soft gaze.

"I really am glad that you're back here, with me." Ichigo says softly. Rukia stands and approaches him. He's being sweet? What is she to make of this? She had expected some snide remark that he didn't really mean to let her know he was happy she'd returned. She definitely hadn't expected to wake up in his arms, or see him looking at her with a smile. If his spiritual power weren't oozing so strongly at the moment, she'd swear she was talking to Kon.

"It's good go be back with you. You'd better get ready so you're not late," Rukia says with a laugh. She sucks in a breath of air quickly as she realizes that she's seen this look before. Kaien had this look often as he'd stared at his wife Miyako, and right now, Ichigo was giving her that exact same look. Rukia feels her stomach tighten at this realization.

She starts racking her brain, wondering if he's ever looked at her like this before, and it hits her that she has seen it before, more than once. So why didn't she notice the connection between this look and the one she often saw Kaien give his wife?

_I recall the very first time he gave me this look. It was the first hollow Ichigo ever sent to hell, and when Ichigo had intercepted it and stopped it when it was after me, he'd looked at me like this just before he was forced to deal with the hollow._

"Are you okay? You were pretty out of it last night. You remember arriving here, right?" Ichigo says as he pulls his clothes out of the drawer. Rukia's eyes widen at the word remember. He'd be surprised if he knew what she was remembering right now. She focuses back on the conversation.

"Sorry I arrived a bit drunk. That was kind of rude of me. The truth is that last night is a bit of a blur. Did anything important happen that I should be aware of?" Rukia asks apologetically.

"We hugged and told each other that we missed one another and then I hugged you again and you passed out on my shoulder, but I am too glad you're here to be upset about that." Ichigo says with a happy grin. Most of all he was glad she was alive. At the mere sight of her last night, he had been able to distinctly feel the sun shining brightly in his inner world. Rukia has one more thought before hopping out the window.

_He had that exact same look on his face when I first opened my eyes to find him stopping the Soukyoku. That look had remained too, well ,until I started yelling at him._

"Kuchiki-san!" Inoue gasps as Ichigo and Rukia enter the classroom together. It kills her to see the complete one eighty his attitude has taken since yesterday.

Sado and Ishida both smile happily. They're all glad to see her alive and well. Inoue can't help but notice that Kurosaki kun looks what she can only describe as radiant.

"Everyone, good morning!" Rukia says with a beaming smile. Inoue rushes over to her.

"When did you get back? We've all been so worried about you! How long can you stay?" Inoue exclaims to Rukia.

"Yeah, Kurosaki was far more miserable than usual." Ishida remarks as he pushes his glasses up his nose. Ichigo shoots him a glare that clearly indicates he plans to retaliate for that at a later time.

"I just got back last night. It was a bit too late for us to call and tell you though, sorry for the shock," Rukia says softly.

"Last night?" Inoue repeats softly. Sado and Ishida exchange glances. Ichigo is thankful Keigo didn't overhear that one. Inoue stiffens, and Ishida shoots her a sympathetic and understanding look.

"We should talk about this stuff later, outside of school." Ichigo says before heading to his seat. Rukia follows behind him and goes to the desk next to him. She looks at his profile and happily taps his arm.

"Just like old times, right Ichigo?" Rukia says with a smile. Ichigo shoots a grin her way.

"It's about damned time if you ask me. We should have skipped class. Why did we come here when you don't even have to start work until after school today? We're leaving at lunch." She hears him say under his breath. Yes, it's good to be back.

"When we get back to your room, I have to finally unpack my things." Rukia says to Ichigo.

"Don't tell me you brought stuff for the closet again." Ichigo groans. "I don't want you sleeping in there anymore. It seems I sleep a hundred times better when you're next to me." Ichigo says as he looks away to hide the blush covering his cheeks. He figures it will take some getting used to, this whole sharing his feelings thing.

Rukia blushes too. Ichigo has never been like this before. Rukia realizes she's lying to herself. She did see him a little bit like this, once. That had been an uncharacteristically emotional day that neither she nor him allowed themselves to think about. She forced her thoughts away from that for now. The time would come when they would have to confront it, but not now. She instead responds to his current behavior.

"This is new." Rukia says, hesitantly looking up at him. "You know, this isn't what I expected." Rukia's voice starts talking very loudly in her ears.

_Not to say that I'm not enjoying every moment of it, but I'm not one of those kind of girls. I will not make him tell me anything he's not ready to._

"I couldn't tell you last night because you fell asleep, but in the time you were gone, I realized, that if I was lucky enough to see you again, that I wouldn't keep my feelings in the dark anymore. You're more than a business partner. You're more than my friend. I'm miserable when you're not around, and I should have told you this a long time ago." Ichigo says, as his face turns even redder. Rukia shivers at the tone of his voice. It's so intense.

"I'm not going anywhere, Ichigo, I'm here for keeps." Rukia says as her heart thumps hard in her chest. "I think you already know what you mean to me. If you didn't mean so much, I wouldn't have been so happy about coming back." Rukia says in a near whisper. Ichigo nods his head. He had always known, even if her actions confused him a bit. Her reassurance was all he really needed, for the moment. He is glad she can at least give him that.

"And no more needless separating in battles either. We should have never separated when we went to Hueco Mundo. Feeling your reiatsu fade like that and being able to do nothing was like forcing me into a temporary hell, and I refuse to let you put me there again, without a damned good reason." Ichigo says as he fixes a glare at her. She looks up at him with he big blue eyes though and Ichigo forgets his anger. Her ability to do that to him is uncanny.

"You're right, we're a team from now on and we won't needlessly separate." Rukia says as she remembers Kaien dono's words about not dying alone. She feels like she ought to take that advice just a little bit more seriously from now on. "Ichigo, I was surprised when I realized it but how come I haven't seen Kon since I've gotten back? Did something happen to him?" Rukia asks curiously. Ichigo's eyes widen in remembrance. _Whoops_.

"I removed his pill right after we were done battling Aizen. He wouldn't shut up and I couldn't take it. We'll get him back in his normal body when we get back home. He'll be thrilled to see you." Ichigo says as he gives her a sideways look. Rukia grins. Yes, everything is just about perfect. Especially the way his words seemed to echo the sentiment that Kon was not the only one thrilled by her return.

Rukia sits on Ichigo's bed as he pulls open his dresser drawer and locates the gikongan and the pitiful lion's body that Kon inhabits. Kon's eyes pop open, and when he sees Rukia on the bed, he's so excited that he leaps right at her.

"Nee-san!" he calls out, happily, Rukia's foot meets his head in the air as she pounds him into the ground.

"You haven't changed at all." Rukia comments as Ichigo watches and rolls his eyes a little bit. Kon just moans as Rukia pushes his face into the floor.

"I'm so happy, so happy." Kon mutters once Rukia relaxes her foot a little. Rukia drags out a bag, and opens it up. The first thing Ichigo notices is a small box on top.

"Hey Rukia, what's that?" Ichigo asks as he points at the box. The flush that goes up her cheeks intrigues both Ichigo and Kon. She had forgotten that Matsumoto had stuck that into her bag, and of course it would be the one thing that caught Ichigo's attention.

"Um, it's uh, Nemu and Rangiku-san's idea of a joking farewell gift. I forgot she slipped it in my bag at the party." Rukia explains as she pulls the box out without opening it and puts it aside on the floor.

"Show me." Ichigo says, now transfixed on the box. He doesn't know much about Nemu but he knows Matsumoto Rangiku is outrageous, and he is too curious about what kind of joking gift the women would present to Rukia. Her blush and her stammering confession are part of the reason he's so curious.

"I don't think that's a good idea." Rukia says, but she's overruled by Ichigo who dives at the box and quickly yanks it out of her reach. Rukia squeals as he draws it out of her reach, mentally cursing herself for her stupidity in releasing the box from her grasp the moment he'd noticed it. Rukia stared at him, mortified. When he sees what this present is…Rukia closes her eyes for a bare instant until she hears him speak.

"Now I have to know." Ichigo informs her as he opens the box. When the white silk teddy flies out from him opening the box so roughly, it lands on his face. "It's soft." He comments right before he pulls it off his face and holds it up in the air.

His face turns seven shades of red once he realizes exactly what it is he's looking at, and Rukia's face is in much the same condition. Neither one speak, but once Rukia recovers a tiny bit, she quickly grabs the garment from him and stuffs it back in the box.

Ichigo decides it will be worth it to thank Nemu and Matsumoto Rangiku if ever he sees Kuchiki Rukia wearing that sexy little outfit.

"Now you know. Happy?" Rukia asks, her voice giving away the fact that she was completely mortified. Ichigo doesn't really respond, and so she turns to look at him, and he has an expression on his face that she can't really identify. He clears his throat.

"You should wear it. I think it will look beautiful on you. It's a major improvement from Yuzu's pajamas." Ichigo finally says in a weird voice. Rukia can feel her face returning to it's red color as she looks at his contemplative face. Then it hits her that he's imagining her in the little outfit. Rukia's mouth is gaped open and Ichigo looks away in embarrassment.

"I agree Nee-san, it would look magnificent on you." Kon says, and Rukia kicks him into the opposite wall. Ichigo turns back to look at her, and when she sees the slumberous look in his eyes, she's reminded of the last time she saw those eyes. For the first time since that day, Rukia finally allows herself to really think about it.

_It was the night he had fought the grande fisher and had been pretty badly injured. Rukia with her weakening reiatsu had been able to heal him enough to visit his mother's grave after his terrifying fight, and he'd been able to hide the serious injuries from his family, but with much effort. He'd even traded a couple of hits with his dad by the cemetery. _

_His father hadn't helped, kicking him in the back at Masaki's grave. He'd used up all his effort by the time they were alone in his room later that evening though, and he needed help removing his clothes. He hadn't said as much but she could tell by the way he was moving that he needed help. She had with concern and without embarrassment undressed him down to his boxers and carefully pulled the cover over his body. That was when he had, with unexpected strength for his weakened condition grabbed her and held her close. _

_Rukia had been so surprised, she'd been unable to quickly react. Not that she wanted to, being in his arms that way was unexpectedly perfectly wonderful. Ichigo had whispered a heartfelt thank you up against her ear for her help and concern, and he'd started caressing her back. Rukia who had never been touched this way, had laid there in Ichigo's arms, letting him rub her back. She'd been absolutely unable to pull away when he had started dropping feathery light kisses on her neck and ear. She had felt her body reacting to his loving touch. _

_He stopped rubbing her back and instead had started rubbing her shoulders and when he let his hands run up and down the full length of her torso, she'd been powerless to stop him. All she could do was satisfy her own desire to touch him back. The light from the moon was bright enough that Ichigo could see her beautiful features, and she could see his as well. She had tentatively put her hands on his chest and started rubbing his muscles. He lets out a groan of pleasure. His body is sore all over, and her touch feels like heaven. _

_The injury to his stomach which she had managed to heal for the most part, she stayed away from. She allowed herself the privilege of running her fingers through his hair, and he'd kept saying her name with a ferociousness that had her entire body responding. _

_They kept touching each other like that for quite awhile, and with each kiss he'd dropped onto her skin, she'd felt a fire lit in that spot and she had been unable to do anything other than enjoy it. He finally grabbed her head and kissed her with all the emotion pent up in his body. All the emotion he'd always kept so carefully hidden from the rest of the world. _

_She had returned this kiss with equal fervor and it was the most wonderful sensation she'd ever felt in her life up to this point. His hands never went below her waist, and even so, her whole entire body had exploded with new emotions she had not known she had. _

_Because of his rough night with the powerful hollow though, he finally fell asleep with his lips and hands touching her skin. Rukia had stayed next to him for another hour before she finally was able to pry herself out of his grasp. She didn't have to unbutton her shirt to put on her pajamas, because Ichigo had unbuttoned it in his journey of her body, she hadn't even noticed when he'd done it. _

They had never discussed it. Not the next day, not when he saved her in Soul Society and certainly not when she'd come back before the battle with Aizen. Both of them were too embarrassed or too proud in the past to bring up that night. It was the night they'd allowed all of their emotions for one another come out.

She knew that he had been a bit vulnerable to his emotions since she'd been there with him to see his mom's dying wish. It was his partly the fact that he'd been confronted with her dying wish, and it was partly that Rukia had been there with him and had witnessed and felt the emotions that were in the air that night. It was probably because of that fact in itself that they didn't discuss it. As they were looking in each others eyes now though, they both recalled it. Kon looks back and forth between them.

"Why did it suddenly get so quiet in here? Are you considering wearing that gorgeous getup for your number one fan?" Kon asks, waiting for a reaction.

Rukia remembers that when they'd gotten home from the grave that night, she had been unable to find the annoying stuffed animal, Kon. (He had been jammed into her backpack, forgotten. (and thankfully unaware of the events that had unfolded in Ichigo's room) Even Kon doesn't know about their one night of emotions and weakness.

Rukia located him right before she'd gone to sleep when she'd gone into her bag for a rubber band to tie back her hair. She had tossed him to the floor and dropped her heavy bag on top of him. It was because of that, the next day when Rukia had attempted to clean him with the school's toilet scrubbing brush. Kon had been dirty from being left on Ichigo's closet floor. Her method of trying to clean him hadn't helped either.

"I haven't decided on whether or not I'll wear it, but I doubt you'll ever see me in it, Kon." Rukia finally says, causing Ichigo to grin a little. Not decided is definitely better than "hell no you fool!"

"Maybe you haven't decided, but I just suddenly realized that when it's time to go to bed, it may be best to remove the gikongan." Ichigo says quietly. Rukia laughs in immediate understanding and Kon jumps up on the bed screaming.

"Now I'm in the way? Is that what you're trying to say?" Kon asks angrily. "Even though you risk your life for any girl you come across…" He's cut off by Ichigo who has grabbed him up and is slamming his head repeatedly into the wall. Ichigo would risk his life for any person.

That had nothing at all to do with Rukia. Part of his lifelong destiny was to rescue people he didn't know. Ichigo can't help it that some of the people in need of rescuing are women. Ichigo has also never admitted out loud that his power never felt stronger than when he was fighting for Rukia. Otherwise he'd have never beat that scary Kenpachi in Soul Society.

"That's exactly what I'm saying, so stop screaming unless you want me to remove it for the night right now." Ichigo says with a scowl at the annoying modified soul. "We need our privacy too, you know." Ichigo says before dropping Kon to the floor and stepping on him. Kon is dazed. Ichigo glances Rukia's way again and his lips curve upwards.

The difference in his mood shift was so dramatic that it even shocked him. Even though he had known that his miserable attitude had been due to being sick and worried about her, he hadn't imagined that he would feel this good just having her close by again. Plus it seemed that now was the perfect time to talk about that night. He grabs his badge and pulls his Shinigami form out of his body.

"Ichigo?" Rukia asks quietly.

"Finish that later Rukia, come with me for awhile." Ichigo says with a warm look in his eyes. Rukia grabs her gikongan and puts Chappy in charge. Ichigo pops the pill out of Kon and inserts him into his own body.

"Don't do anything stupid." Ichigo says in a menacing voice. He looks over at Chappy. "Make sure my family doesn't see you." He says in a little bit nicer of a voice. "C'mon Rukia." Ichigo says as he hops out the window. Rukia follows him and they fly to a tall tower and Ichigo sits down. Rukia sits beside him and Ichigo turns towards her.

"Why did we come here?" Rukia asks quietly.

"To talk, of course," Ichigo says lightly. "We have to talk about it now. You're here indefinitely, right?" Ichigo asks her in a serious tone. "You're not leaving again, right?" Ichigo asks a bit desperately. Rukia smiles reassuringly. She notices the students from their class making their way home, and she hopes none of them have gained the ability to see Shinigami as well. She looks over at Ichigo to quell his fears.

"I'm here as long as you are. Those are my orders." Rukia says with a smile. Ichigo tenses up a little bit and doesn't say anything for a moment.

"Orders, huh? I'm glad that your assignment is to be my partner, but what about what you actually want? Do you want to be my partner, or are you wishing you were in Soul Society now?" Ichigo asks, not realizing how nervous he is about her answer.

"Of course I'm glad to be here, how can you even ask me that? While it's true that I may not have been able to be here now if my orders had been other than what they were, there's nowhere I'd rather be than here with you." Rukia says honestly. "If my next mission took me far away from you, there's no way I could have been happy with that." Rukia says softly.

Ichigo almost reminds her that she chose Soul Society over him back when he'd saved her from execution, but he remembered she'd later returned with her powers and explained that by staying there she'd gotten them back.

Rukia was the kind of girl who would want to be powerful so that she could stand by him and not be weak to simply rely on him. With her powers back they could rely on each other, as she had proven on more than one occasion after she'd regained the use of her powers.

He chooses not to have a pointless argument. Not to mention the fact that Soul Society had huge problems on its hands back then due to Aizen. She had more than one good reason for staying there back then. Bringing that up now would be wrong. Now is not the time.

"So our future is really the question now. I hope you don't believe that I'm the kind of guy that likes to string girls along, I was never interested in dating lots of girls, I'm the kind of guy that once he falls in love, it's for keeps. It's the influence of my mother, that made me that way, that's what I think." Ichigo says and he looks at her again.

"I've always known that despite your rough exterior, you are a truly good and decent person. I knew the moment we first kissed that you wouldn't be joking about it the next day with your friends, that it meant something to you." Rukia says as she looks up into his eyes. Ichigo scoffs. He puts his hand on her chin to keep her from looking away. She still didn't get it. As much as he liked Shakespeare, he didn't want to end up like the guy's most famous fictional couple. At least his family likes her, even if hers can't stand him. He'd have to spell it out for the adorable girl looking up into his eyes.

"It meant _everything_ to me. If you think you're ever getting away from me again…" Ichigo starts and then stops to squeeze her and lean forward to kiss her head. "Marry me." Ichigo says with an aching quality to his voice. Rukia stares at him in shock.

"Marry you?" She repeats in a high pitched voice. Rukia's first thought is _isn't he skipping a step?_ "I can't really believe your father would agree to such a thing for you when you're only sixteen years old. Plus, we haven't even been on a date!" Rukia stammers out. This was not what she had expected. Ichigo must have really lost his mind in the time she was gone, not knowing what had happened to her must have impacted him far more than she'd realized.

"It's a yes or no question, Rukia. I didn't mean we'd have the ceremony tomorrow. We'll wait until after my eighteenth birthday. But I need to know right now that we are true partners in every sense of the word. I promise to take you out on dates." Ichigo says as he runs his hand through her hair.

Rukia's smile made Ichigo's heart jump, and he feels pretty ridiculous, because he was not the kind of guy who had ever had a jumpy heart before. He knew he'd kind of messed up proposing to her, but he's still new at this whole love thing, and he's even more inexperienced at talking about love or his own feelings. The woman he's been pining away for hasn't answered him yet either which is enough to make him grit his teeth as he waits impatiently for her response.

"I want that as much as you do." Rukia says happily. Ichigo loves her answer, and he lets her know by hauling her onto his lap and kissing her deeply on the mouth. "I still insist on a proper courtship though!"

"I promise. I can never be truly happy when you're so far away." Ichigo whispers against her lips. "I'm so glad you came back. Welcome home, Rukia." Ichigo says against her lips before kissing her again. When he finally pulls away to catch his breath, she smiles as her brilliant blue eyes shine up at him.

"I've never been happier than I am at this very moment right now, and the funny thing is, I know this won't be the last time I'm saying this to you." Rukia says with a small laugh.

"If I can be with you for the rest of my living life and spiritual life, then I am happy." Ichigo replies.

"I've decided, Ichigo. I'll wear the teddy for you tonight." Rukia whispers with a blush. He blushes back but smiles at her.

He wraps his arms around her and they stay together like that for quite some time before reluctantly deciding to head back home.


	46. Courtesy of Kuukaku

_**A/N-Not to toot my own horn, but I LOVED the way this turned out, and I hope you all do too! Enjoy!**_

_Courtesy of Kuukaku_

"Yoruichi! Long time no see, what in the hell are you doing here?" Shiba Kuukaku asks her friend. Yoruichi fluffs up her fur.

"For once, I'm actually just swinging by to say hello to an old friend, since all you ever do is accuse me of coming around when I need a favor," Yoruichi replies in an amused voice. She licks her paw.

"I'm glad to see you, since I have some questions for you." Kuukaku says with a smile that puts Yoruichi on alert. _What kind of questions?_

"What?" Yoruichi asks, studying her friend carefully.

"It's about Kurosaki Ichigo, how is he doing?" Kuukaku asks, causing Yoruichi to feel like she can't keep up with the pace of the subject switching.

"Ichigo? He's fine, I guess." Yoruichi says as she gazes intensely at her friend.

"I have a soft spot for that kid, you know. He reminds me so much of Kaien." Kuukaku says softly.

"That he does." Yoruichi agrees as she tries to figure out where this is all headed.

"And how is Kuchiki Rukia?" Kuukaku asks next. "I heard she was sent back to the living world." Kuukaku emphasizes to Yoruichi.

""Ah yes, she was indeed." Yoruichi says, waiting to see what this is all leading up to.

"Have they gotten together yet?" Kuukaku asks with a grin. Yoruichi laughs.

"Those two? They're as clueless as newborns. Their bond may be deeper than words can describe but they don't even seem to consider romance in their lives. At all." Yoruichi says with a sense of finality. Kuukaku gives her a knowing grin.

"I'd like to help them get together." Kuukaku shares with Yoruichi, earning her an arrogant scoff from the cat.

"That would take something mighty extreme. Like hell freezing over." Yoruichi says, with doubt filling her voice.

_They may be around each other all of the time, but neither of them seems willing to test the waters and try something that would extend the bounds of their current relationship._

"I have just the trick." Kuukaku says with confidence, causing Yoruichi to stare at her in shock.

"You have a trick to make hell freeze over? What is it?" Yoruichi asks with curiosity.

"Take this request to Urahara when you go back to the living world. Tell him it's a request from me, and to not even think about turning it down." Kuukaku says instead of answering Yoruichi's question. Kuukaku ties her request with a string around Yoruichi's neck, careful not to choke her.

"You aren't even going to tell me your plan?" Yoruichi asks in a hurt voice.

"It's up to Urahara to decide whether or not to tell you. You tell him that if he rejects me he'll regret it. I'll send Ganju and boar to rip up his second rate store if he even considers turning me down!" Kuukaku orders Yoruichi.

"It's not like I can say no, considering all of the favors that you've done for me," Yoruichi tells her with a depressed note to her voice.

"You're a true friend, thanks." Kuukaku tells her. "Would you like something to eat?"

"No, I just came by to visit really quick before I headed back to the living world. I'll take your request immediately to Kisuke." Yoruichi promises as she turns around to leave.

"Please make sure you update me on how Ichigo and Rukia are doing, as soon as you notice a change." Kuukaku requests.

"I hope you're not holding your breath," Yoruichi says, unsure of what the future will hold for Ichigo and Rukia.

_At Urahara's Store_

"Yoruichi-san! You're home, I'm so happy to see you!" Urahara sings as he lifts her high into the air. "What's this?" He asks as he sees a rolled up piece of paper tied to her neck.

"A request from Shiba Kuukaku that you would be wise to grant, considering the way she was talking." Yoruichi tells him. Urahara looks surprised.

"Kuukaku sent this? No way!" Urahara is glad he can finally pay the woman back for all the times he owes her for her help on that side.

"I'd like to know the details since she didn't share them with me, and I didn't peek." Yoruichi tells him.

"I wonder what it is." Urahara mutters as he unties the note from around Yoruichi's neck.

He unrolls the note and reads. Yoruichi notices when his eyes pop out of his head.

"What?" Yoruichi asks him.

"She made an illegal request," Urahara mutters. "Damn, and I'm trying to get on Soul Society's good side." He groans. It's not like he can turn her down.

"It's time for you to spill it." Yoruichi says with impatience. Urahara nods.

"You, I can trust. You must swear never to reveal what I'm about to tell you though." He tells her in a whisper.

_In the past…_

_Urahara actually had more than one invention that was shunned by Soul Society. One of those inventions happened to be for romantic purposes of those with spiritual power. It was candy, that when consumed by two people who share feelings for one another, whether or not they have shared those feelings would make them desire each other so strongly that they had no chance of doing anything other than acting on it._

_Urahara had tested the candy on several different couples, some who were in known relationships, and others who secretly admired one another. The candy's success rate was one hundred percent. _

_It was argued by Room Forty-six that the candy could technically be a rape drug since everybody who had the candy ended up having a sexual encounter shortly thereafter. It was also determined that it could be a risk to children. He was ordered to stop producing it and to destroy what he had in his laboratories. It was decided that this was one invention that would not be made available at all._

_Urahara had argued that not one of the couples claimed that they felt forced to do something they didn't want to do, and that everyone who ate the candy was rather glad that they did after. Urahara even called on test subjects to prove his point, but Room Forty-six was very worried about the possibilities of the drug, as they called it, and assumed it would be better to be safe than to be sorry._

_Urahara had gotten angry, telling them that they had no basis whatsoever for their argument, and he had been immediately dragged out of the hearing and had been told to cool his jets. _

When Yoruichi learns of all of this, she's shocked.

"How come I never knew about all of this?" She asks him with concern.

"I didn't come to you with every objection they had to my inventions, there are many inventions that they rejected that you are unaware of." Urahara tells her.

"How did Shiba Kuukaku know about it?" Yoruichi asks him, a bit hurt that he hadn't shared with her.

"I told her about it when I was developing it and she took interest. I had given her some of the candy, but I never recovered it, nor did I try to. I was pretty sour at the way room Forty-six shut me down, and I figured someone may as well enjoy the candy. I am pretty sure that's how Kaien and his wife ended up getting together." Urahara tells her with a grin.

"So you're going to make some more?" Yoruichi ask him next.

"I can't refuse her, not after she helped us out when we sent the kids to Soul Society. I think I'll have you deliver it to the kids with a note attached that says _Courtesy of Kuukaku."_ Urahara says with a smile.

"Those kids won't know what hit them." Yoruichi predicts with amusement before she starts to laugh. "Good old Kuukaku!" Yoruichi adds with her eyes twinkling merrily.

"The problem would be if they let their friends try the candy. We could get some undesirable results." Urahara tells Yoruichi with a sigh.

"What do you mean?" She asks him suspiciously.

"I don't have any way of knowing the feelings for the others in the group, it's only Kurosaki-san and Kuchiki-san who are completely obvious about it.

"Why does that matter?" Yoruichi asks him.

"I guess it really doesn't." He answers her.

"What if one of them pigs out on it all?" She asks him next. Urahara grins.

"That's never happened before. It would sure be interesting though," Urahara says thoughtfully. Yoruichi groans.

"You shouldn't be so nonchalant about it, Kuukaku will get mad if you fuck it up." She tells him.

"Then tell them when you deliver it that Kuukaku demands they eat the candy. Tell them you'll tell her if they don't eat it together, and that ought to ensure success." Urahara says with a bit of annoyance. Yoruichi sighs.

"How long until you have it prepared?" She asks next.

"I can have it ready by Friday afternoon." He answers next.

"Alright." Yoruichi answers.

"Don't you dare tell them that I made it either." Urahara grumbles at her.

"Of course." Yoruichi tells him, as she imagines what it will be like when the kids gorge on the candy.

_Friday Afternoon…_

"Is that Yoruichi-san waiting for us?" Rukia asks as she squints towards Ichigo's house.

"Looks like it. I wonder what she wants." Ichigo says as he flings his bag over his shoulder. They hurry towards his house to find a smiling Yoruichi waiting for them.

"Ichigo, long time no see," Yoruichi says with a grin.

"You're back from Soul Society?" Ichigo asks her with wide eyes.

"Yes, and before I left, I visited someone who wanted me to bring the two of you a gift, and she has ordered that you share it." Yoruichi tells them. "Also, you're only to share it with each other." Yoruichi adds. Rukia and Ichigo exchange glances as Yoruichi hands them a small bag with a tag attached to it.

_Courtesy of Kuukaku_

Rukia accepts the bag and unties it. Her eyes widen in delight.

"It's candy!" Rukia says excitedly, causing Ichigo to roll his eyes. _How can she get so excited over mere candy? _

"Why don't you try it?" Yoruichi says. Rukia immediately digs in and pulls a piece out. Ichigo follows her reluctantly. Rukia quickly eats her candy.

"It's delicious!" Rukia says happily, as Ichigo eats his piece. His eyes widen.

"It _is_ really good." He says in agreement.

"Alright, I have things to do, see you later!" Yoruichi says as she walks away.

_My job is done._

Rukia pulls another piece out and quickly consumes it. Ichigo opens the door before reaching into the bag in her hands for a second piece. They both head upstairs to his room where Rukia sits on the bed and Ichigo sits at his desk. They quickly finish off the remaining candy.

"Damn, that was good." Ichigo says, smacking his lips. Rukia grins at him.

"I wish we had more." Rukia comments as she leans back in his bed.

She enjoys being here with Ichigo, even when he acts like he's sick of her being around. Every time she's in trouble, the fear and worry on his face remind her just how much she means to him. It's a different look than what he has for strangers, and even different from the look she's seen him have for his other friends. It's a special look that he gives only to her.

Rukia smiles as she remembers how glorious Ichigo looked as he defended against the Soukyoku. She had been so sure that she was seeing things when she first spotted him, but it had been completely real.

_And completely romantic._

Rukia lets out a little sigh at that thought and then she blushes. No way will she ever tell Ichigo that she thinks he looked glorious, his head is already big enough. She can hardly believe some of the trash talk that comes out of his mouth when he's ready for a fight. She won't add to his ego problem.

It disturbs her that she is the only one who notices his arrogant side. Sometimes though, when he finishes an opponent, he ridicules them before he lays on the finishing blow. What had he said last time? Ah, yes.

_You didn't stand a chance once I figured out the secret to your spiritual powers, now die!_

His voice is so deep and low, and murderous when he talks like that, and it always makes her nervous, since she likes his sweet side, not his egotistical side.

She really likes it when she can see his bare chest. It's so hot and sexy. Rukia looks at Ichigo surreptitiously and she eyes his profile with interest.

_What would it be like to have him holding me in his arms, crushing his body against mine…skin to skin, lip to lip, what would that feel like, and can I go another day without finding out?_

While Rukia was having her thoughts, Ichigo was having some of his own.

He's happy she's here and not in Soul Society, though he's never actually voiced that thought out loud. He's sure she knows. Every time he sees her after a period of absence, everything in life seems much nicer. Even waking up in the morning is nicer, because he knows he'll walk her to school, even if they do tend to split up the moment they get there.

He remembers how she had appeared in the living world right as his hollow was making his life miserable. How he had looked her up and down from head to toe, and how he'd felt his whole body tingle like he'd just gotten jolted.

_She's finally home!_

That was what he'd been thinking in his head before she kicked him in the face, and made a remark about how he was looking stupid.

_Duh Rukia, I was admiring the sight of you. Just the sight of you had me feeling like I was already saved. Even now, I'm not a hundred percent sure you know how strongly I feel for you. I really want to touch and kiss you, and I want to lose myself in you, and give you my everything. Now and forevermore, I can live in peace if you're always there with me. Like I can enjoy a day without seeing those big beautiful blue eyes of yours._

_Do they get bluer Rukia? When you feel like you want to touch and be touched, do your eyes get even more amazing than they already are? I want to see, I want to find out for myself just what you're like when you're passionate. Is it as energetic as it is when you're angry? I've wanted you for so long, too damned long. _

_How have I let myself do it for so long, ignore these yearning feelings…my heart calls for her. Day…and night._

Ichigo lets his eyes wander over to where Rukia is now laying on his bed with her arms in the air. She's not looking at him, but the way she's laying makes him want to straddle her.

Ichigo stands and pushes back the chair.

Rukia looks over at him, and Ichigo is amazed by the look in her eyes. They're practically begging him to come over to her.

Rukia notices the moment Ichigo stands. She's never been more aware of his presence in her entire life. It's like her body is pulsating with want and desire to be close to him. When she looks in his eyes, it's a look that makes her heart pound faster. He's looking at her in that way that a man looks at a woman that he wants.

Rukia takes deep breaths as he takes the two steps needed to be at the bed. She shivers as he sits down next to her, never taking his eyes off of her. She can hear exactly what he's thinking.

_You're so beautiful Rukia, how come I can never tell you how beautiful I think you are?_

Rukia's eyes widen. She heard his thoughts clearly in her own mind and she can feel her heart aching for him.

_I've never told you how amazing you are either. It's not just your looks, it's you. Nobody in this world makes my heart beat like you do, Kurosaki Ichigo._

Ichigo's eyes widen at the clarity of her words in his head. Why can he hear her when her lips aren't even moving? Can it really be this easy? To let her know the depths of his heart without ever having to say it out loud?

_You are the only one I ever want to be with, Rukia. You're the only woman who understands me. You're the only woman who can hit me and make everything all better, with just that one little touch from you. I want to see your face every day. I never want to be a day without it again._

Rukia feels the blood draining from her face. It's Ichigo's voice, loud and clear she can hear what he feels for her. It's as though he said it out loud, even though she knows he didn't, since she's been staring at him the whole time.

_I always worried that there was someone else you'd rather be with._

Rukia looks at him closely to read his face while she hears his words. He stands, and doesn't take his eyes off of her as he does.

_Psh. There could never be anybody else who fits me as perfectly as you do. You of all people, had doubts about me? As many times as you've saved my ass, you haven't seen that every day I cherish you like nobody else? How could you not see it Rukia?!_

She blinks furiously, to keep the tears from welling up in her eyes, but she's completely unsuccessful.

_I'm so sorry, you're right of course. Of all of the people in my life to doubt, it should have never been you. I love you, and I guess I was just afraid of what it would mean for me if you didn't love me back._

Rukia breathes deeply. He said he wanted to see her face every day. How could she not tell him she loves him after that?

_Love. That word is so common. What I feel for you goes way beyond words, you bunny loving fool._

Rukia glares at him.

_Don't bring Chappy into this!_

Ichigo rolls his eyes.

_Don't you understand what I'm telling you, Rukia? I can't be happy without you, so you'd damned well better get used to being with me!_

Rukia feels a smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

_Like it will be hard to get used to? When are you going to get into this bed and let me run my hands up and down that muscular chest of yours anyways? Do you have to be such a tease all of the time?_

Ichigo's eyes widen.

_You're the tease. You walk around here looking all edible everyday and expect me to stay sane. Do you really want me in that bed with you? Because I'll be all over you like a maniac._

Ichigo's eyes look questioning.

_Like I said…you're a tease. Get into this bed right now!_

The beginning of something new, Courtesy of Kuukaku.

_A week later…_

"They never figured out it was the candy." Yoruichi says with a shake of her head.

"But they're together, right?" Kuukaku asks with a smile.

"They're disgusting about it now." Yoruichi says with a nod.

"Good. I'm just such a big IchiRuki fan, you know?" Kuukaku says with a smile.

"You and many others, believe me…their numbers are the largest I've ever seen for a couple in Soul Society." Yoruichi tells her.

"I've seen the polls, it's amazing how everybody has been rooting them on, but I have the knowledge of knowing it was me that finally pushed them together!" Shiba says with a satisfied laugh.

"You and Urahara." Yoruichi says with a nod.

Ganju sits behind the screen and shivers.

_Nee-chan is scary…women are scary._


	47. The Morning After

**A/N-This one shot is supposed to be the morning after Rukia and Ichigo lose their virginity to one another, and also have made a commitment to one another. Enjoy!**

The Morning After

Rukia wakes up early, before Ichigo's alarm goes off. He's in far too deep a sleep to notice when she climbs out of bed. It's not that bright out yet, but it's getting brighter by the moment. Rukia blushes as she remembers the shower they took together last night before they'd finally laid down to actually go to sleep. His family doesn't know she's back at their house yet, otherwise she would have surely been relegated to Yuzu and Karin's room.

She opens the closet and yanks her uniform out from underneath Ichigo's uniform. It had been habit ever since she'd first stayed here to hang her clothes up and then his went over hers. This way there wasn't a girls uniform ever showing in his closet.

She quickly dresses and then sits at the desk to brush her hair. She has the chair turned towards him so that she can watch him sleep. He has changed so much. He had always been as lousy as her at sharing his feeling. She always thought he'd rather tear out his own eyeballs than to talk about his feelings, but then she remembers some of their moments from the past in which his love had been evident.

Like the first hollow Ichigo had ever seen sent to hell. When he'd finally caught back up with her being chased by that hollow that day, he'd snarled at her for trying to act cool when she was beat up, and said he thought she'd said there'd be no slip ups for him to worry about.

She had been so glad to see him, and so she'd called out the first thing that popped into her head.

_Fool, that's only a line that someone who was at least a little worried would say._

She remembers how he said that was true too, and she feels a shiver run through her body.

Rukia sighs and sets the brush down. She hears the rest of his household start to buzz with activity The room is almost fully light from the morning sun, and she jumps with a start when Ichigo's voice roars loudly, the room literally shakes from the intensity and volume of his yelling voice.

_"**Damn it Rukia, what the hell? You promised me you wouldn't go back! Why**-"_ The strength of his own voice wakes him straight into a sitting position, and his eyes pop open instantly. His eyes focus on Rukia, whose mouth gaped so far open, he can't help but to let out a little laugh. It's a rare moment to see her in a state where she doesn't have complete composure.

"What in the hell was that?" Rukia hisses urgently as footsteps thump loudly towards Ichigo's room. His face instantly turns red as Rukia dives head first into the closet. Ichigo is left to deal with his family who barge into his room an instant later, and he feels completely idiotic as his sisters and his father appear in front of him.

"Ichi-ni, what on earth happened?" Karin asks first. His father's eyes are wide as Yuzu runs over to Ichigo.

"Why did you yell like that? I've never heard you use that tone of voice before!" Yuzu says looking at him intently.

"Uh, sorry. I guess I had a bad dream. You said I yelled?" Ichigo inquires. He looks away, and he happens to look at the desk where Rukia's very girly brush was laying in plain view It's right next to the candle (for romantic effects the night before) that he never put away. Seriously, was he trying to get caught? He inwardly freaks out on himself for being so careless. He immediately turns his head back towards his family.

"Yes." Karin says bobbing her head up and down animatedly. Ichigo forgets what he'd just asked, but is reminded when his father adds to her answer.

"Something about Rukia promising you not to go back." His father adds dryly, with the corners of his mouth suspiciously twitching up and down. His family looks at him, they're all mesmerized by the deep shade of red that his face has turned.

Ichigo swallows audibly enough for them all to hear it. He's sure even Rukia has heard it from the closet, then he has the distinct feeling that she's in there enjoying this exchange, and she probably forgot completely about her brush, not that he can blame her since he left the candle out, but they both needed to be far more careful.

"Ichi-ni, why do you have bruises on your arms and shoulders? What happened to you?" Karin asks next. Ichigo's face turns white as he remembers the way Rukia had gripped his arms and shoulders in plenty of death grips last night, not that he'd minded in the least at the time, but how to explain to his family?

"Well I'm okay-" Ichigo starts to reply and then his alarm goes blaring, effectively cutting off his voice. He quickly shuts it off and looks at his family. Luckily his blush has gone away, must have been the distraction from the alarm clock.

"You have scratches on your back too!" Yuzu cries out in concern. He shoots his father a death glare when the old man dares to chuckle.

"I didn't mean to scare you. Sorry. I'll get ready for school now," Ichigo says in a low voice that suggests they all let it go. Karin gives him a weird look, Yuzu gives him a concerned look, and his dimwitted father is grinning like a fool. Ichigo's had enough of being gawked at first thing in the morning. "Out!" He shouts. The girls dash out, but his father just looks at him with a thoughtful look on his face before slowly turning and exiting the room. He holds the door open, however, and looks back at his son.

"Congratulations on finally becoming a man." His father says quietly but with a look in his eyes that Ichigo can't quite figure out. Then the words penetrate. Ichigo's calm is obliterated in an instant, and his father laughs before pulling the door shut. _He knows?_

The moment the door closes, the closet door slides open, but Rukia doesn't come out. She has grabbed up about four sheets and is laughing so hard that no noise is coming out, but if it starts to, it will be muffled. She finally catches her breath and raises her sparkling blue eyes to look at him.

"Nice." That's all she can manage before she falls back into a hale of giggles. Ichigo stands up and stomps towards her. He stops and grabs the brush off his desk. Rukia can only laugh harder. He heads towards he and without a word hands her the brush.

She watches as he yanks his arm in the closet grabbing his own uniform. He's already in the habit of feeling the hanger to be sure he's grabbed the right one so that Rukia's uniform is hidden, but as usual, she's taken the uniform within closest reach and he feels the bare hanger, confirming her presence stays hidden. He pulls on his uniform and Rukia gets a hold of herself and hides the brush under some of his sweat shirts.

"I'm glad this was amusing for you," Ichigo says sending a scowl her way. Rukia immediately becomes serious.

"What on earth were you dreaming about?:" She asks him as she hops out of the closet.

"I had a nightmare that you were leaving me. You were going back to Soul Society and you informed me you were never coming back. You told me that I had to live my life without you." Ichigo says quietly, an angry look appearing in his eye. Rukia immediately feels bad for laughing at him.

"Ichigo, I've told you before, and I'll say it again. I'm here to stay. Even if by chance some emergency situation called for me to leave your side for any long period of absence, only death would keep me from ever seeing you again. You won't probably be consoled by my words though and so I'll have to show you." Rukia says sincerely, walking over to him before he buttons up his shirt. He had put on his pants first. She puts her arms around him, but she sticks them under his shirt first, so that her hands are holding his bare back. Ichigo's arms come up around her as well.

"I'm going to hold you to that. You'd better never disappear out of my life. You're definitely not allowed to die either." Ichigo says fervently. Rukia smiles into his muscular chest.

"I will do everything in my power to follow those orders, since I know they're given with good intentions." Rukia says, rubbing his back a little. Ichigo instantly pulls away and gives her a look of concern.

"Are you…okay?" He asks her. He knew he had hurt her the night before. _His tough little woman hadn't even complained when he'd first met her and a hollow had nearly killed her, but last night she had let out a sharp cry of pain, and then he had seen the tears. She didn't want to cry, but she hadn't had any control over it. _Rukia looks away from him as her face turns pink.

"Yeah, I'm not in pain or anything," Rukia says.

"I'm sorry." He said softly. Rukia looks up in surprise. Then she hits him in the gut. Hard. Ichigo legs out all the air in his lungs as he doubles over in pain.

"What are you apologizing for, you idiot?!" Rukia's voice raises a little bit, but she appears to remember other people live in his home and don't know she's there. "Last night was beautiful. It was perfect. Just because I had a painful physical reaction because it was my first time does not mean it was any less special! If that's the case then I'm sorry about these." Rukia says, pointing at his bruises before she stares up at him with her big eyes. Ichigo grins at her _There's no need to be sorry about those_.

"You're right. I'm glad we're finally together, Rukia." Ichigo says in a heartfelt voice.

"I am too." Rukia whispers with a truly happy grin.


	48. As Requested: Urahara's Mirrors 3

**A/N- If you don't remember how Urahara's Mirror's went, please go back and read 30 & 31. This is part three, and I am adding it due to the request of a reviewer. As always this chapter is dedicated to the one who requested it, please enjoy!**

_Urahara's Mirrors 3_

Ichigo glances around nervously at the huge gathering that has arrived for his and Rukia's wedding. Urahara and Yoruichi were given permission to sit up front with Ichigo's father, and Ichigo is waiting nervously for his bride to appear with her brother to give her away for the ceremony.

He can hardly believe this all started over some mirrors. When he had presented Rukia her engagement ring on Christmas Eve, she hadn't really been surprised, but she had been happy. She admitted to him that she saw the scene play out in the mirrors, and Ichigo had smiled at her. He remembers how he tugged off her mitten to put on the ring, and how he felt much better after she was wearing it.

That act had made everything official. Rukia has seemed elated that she'll finally be joining the Kurosaki family, and she has willingly agreed to be a Kurosaki, rather than asking him to take her noble name of Kuchiki. She has always thought the Kurosaki family was a lot more pleasant than the Kuchiki clan anyways.

Ichigo hasn't seen Rukia since the day before, and he's anxious to see her in the wedding gown that Ishida had created. Ishida had bragged to Ichigo that it was his masterpiece. Rukia ended up choosing violet for the dresses of her bridesmaids, and the flowers around the room are violet as well.

Finally, it's time to start. Ichigo feels his heart thump as the ceremony starts to take place. It seems like forever as their endless wedding party starts down the aisle first. Ichigo grins at Sado with Kuukaku. They actually look pretty good together. Ichigo also notices that Ishida seems overly happy as he escorts Inoue down the aisle.

Renji and Tatsuki have been getting along surprisingly well, and Rukia is considering throwing her bouquet at the girl so that hers and Ichigo's best friends can be next in line for marriage. She had told Ichigo that fact with a little grin. Hinamori and Mizuiro come down next. Mizuiro hadn't really been attracted to Hinamori, but they seem to get along fine. Next is Karin and Keigo. Karin looks unexpectedly beautiful all done up with her dress and hair. She keeps giving Keigo a sideways glare to keep him in line. Yuzu and Hanatarou come last, and they too seem to have become friends over the course of the past several months.

The march of the bride starts, and everybody stands, as Byakuya enters the room holding Rukia's arm. Ichigo can feel his heart smashing against his chest as he stares at his amazingly beautiful bride. Her dress is every bit as beautiful as Ishida had proclaimed it to be, and with it on Rukia, it's effect was magnified tenfold. Her dress has a short train, but the design, fabrics, and accessories look breathtakingly beautiful and perfect.

Her dress doesn't have any straps, and it doesn't flare out too much at the bottom, it ends up giving her the look of being taller since it doesn't flare as much as he had imagined it probably would.

He cannot wait to get her to Hawaii for their honeymoon. He also remembers the way Byakuya had released his sword when he found out about their plans. He doesn't give Byakuya a second look though, because he couldn't look away from Rukia even if he attempted to.

When she finally gets to his side, Byakuya presents her to Ichigo before stepping back. Ichigo gives Rukia a look of earth shattering love before they turn their attention to the man performing the ceremony.

Time goes very slowly for both of them. Finally though, they're told that Ichigo may now kiss the bride. Everyone leans forward a little bit at that. Ichigo and Rukia finally break away from one another and a thunderous cheer breaks out in the room.

Ichigo smiles down at Rukia.

"Congratulations, Kurosaki-san." Ichigo says in a low voice to her, wanting to acknowledge her taking his last name immediately following the ceremony.

"Thank you, Ichigo." Rukia tells him with a smile. It had made her heart jump in happiness that he called her Kurosaki-san. It was definitely something she can get used to other people calling her, but she has always liked the way Ichigo says her name. They start to walk slowly towards the exit.

"Now you can work on enlarging the family!" Isshin says as he pops up behind them. Ichigo and Rukia blush at that loud comment, which many other people heard, and their reaction was to laugh.

"Don't worry, we'll get started on that right away." Rukia tells Isshin seriously. He laughs jovially.

"I knew I could count on you to take care of business for my dimwitted son." Isshin says, causing even more people to laugh. Ichigo somehow feels it would be inappropriate to slug his father in the face, considering it's his and Rukia's wedding day, but he's feeling sorely tempted to anyways.

"How would you feel about twins?" Rukia asks Isshin softly, causing Ichigo's anger to dissipate. Isshin's eyes pop out of his head.

"That would be a dream come true," Isshin admits as more tears form in his eyes.

"Ichigo and I will make it a top priority." Rukia promises him with a wink.

"You are the best daughter-in-law that I could have ever asked for!" Isshin says, bawling madly. Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"Yeah, it's not like I would have anything to do with the phenomenon." Ichigo says sarcastically. His father wallops him in the back of the head, and is suddenly no longer crying.

"You're not allowed to use that tone of voice on your wedding day." Isshin tells him seriously as he stares at his son. "It might upset Rukia." Isshin adds when Ichigo gives his father an angry look.

"Come on, Ichigo. We have to take some pictures and head to the reception hall." Rukia tells him, and they walk a little bit quicker. They're congratulated by everybody they pass by, and everybody besides Byakuya seems very happy that the pair have finally tied the knot.

Nobody is happier than Ichigo and Rukia are though. They both give each other intensely loving gazes.

_At the Reception…_

Ichigo and Rukia have a splendid time, and they even toast their marriage with sake.

When it's time for Sado to give the best man speech, Ichigo worries since Sado isn't much of a speech giver. Rukia's eyes look bright and happy though as Sado takes a microphone so that everybody at the reception can hear him.

"Never in my life have I met two people more suited for each other. I can't think of a woman better suited to my best friend. Ever since I first saw them together, I noticed what a great couple they made. They have always cared more about each other than they have themselves. They're both spirited and they're both survivors, and I am confident that they have made the right decision. The love that they share is a shining example of what love should be. I wish nothing but the best of luck to both of you, congratulations." Sado says before raising his drink.

This is the first time Sado has ever had an alcoholic beverage. Every other time in his life he had no trouble turning down sake, but he couldn't do that for his best friend's wedding, this was the exception to the rule. Everyone raises their cups after his speech and Rukia smiles brightly at him. Ichigo grins in a satisfied way as well.

Everyone is served an expensive meal, though the time spent eating seems to fly by quickly. Rukia had been very careful not to get anything on her wedding dress, which she is still wearing. When dinner is wrapping up, Ichigo and Rukia stare at each other lovingly.

Isshin jumps up.

"It's time for the bride and groom to share the first dance!" Isshin yells loudly, and everybody cheers. Ichigo flames up. This had been the worst part of the past few months, learning to dance so that he wouldn't step on Rukia's feet or make an ass of him and her at their reception.

Ichigo stands and offers his hand to Rukia who takes it and stands gracefully. He leads her out onto the floor and a waltz begins to play. Ichigo and Rukia take up their dancing positions and stare into each other's eyes as they dance. The song ends quicker than anticipated. Rukia ends up dancing with her brother and his father before she is returned to Ichigo for another dance.

Ichigo was dancing with his sisters while Rukia danced with his father and Byakuya. Karin had given him a partial glare throughout their dance, and she had been kind of embarrassed, but Isshin had given her a look that meant she had to dance with Ichigo.

When Rukia throws her bouquet, she takes note of where Tatsuki is standing before she throws. Rukia's aim is perfect and Tatsuki blushes as she winds up being the one who catches the bouquet.

When they cut their wedding cake, Rukia and Ichigo go to feed each other, and Ichigo is kind, since he doesn't want to ruin Ishida's masterpiece, but Rukia isn't so kind. She smashes the cake in his face as she had heard tradition dictates she do. Ichigo ended up with cake all over his face, and everybody laughed, which made a loud echoing noise throughout the reception hall. Ichigo had glared at her as he'd wiped his face clean and his face had shown his thoughts perfectly.

_I'll get you back for that._

The rest of the night goes smoothly, and both Ichigo and Rukia decide they have to find Urahara before they leave to celebrate their wedding night. They finally locate him in a cozy corner, nuzzling Yoruichi's neck. Rukia taps him on the arm and Urahara looks up and gives them a happy smile.

"Congratulations!" Urahara sings out.

"It's thanks to you that everything happened the way that it did, and we both just really wanted to thank you." Rukia tells him softly. Urahara can't miss the clear happiness in her eyes.

"You are most welcome." Urahara tells them. Rukia and Ichigo smile.

"You wouldn't believe how many times Urahara's mirrors have shown people the truth," Yoruichi adds with a grin.

"We owe you one." Ichigo says firmly.

"No need to think of it like that." Urahara says with a wave of his hand.

"Come on Rukia, it's time to leave." Ichigo says to her, giving her a look of anticipation.

They locate his family and her brother and they inform them that they're ready to leave. Isshin gets a big goofy smile on his face.

"Now _that's_ what I'm talking about." Isshin says with a satisfied nod of his head, causing Byakuya to glare at him.

"Take care of my sister or die." Byakuya says as he's glaring at Ichigo's offensive father.

"Oh he'll take care of her alright." Isshin says, not caring about Byakuya's stick up the butt attitude. Both Rukia and Ichigo feel a bit shocked at this comment. Their eyes both widen at the embarrassing words.

"Come on," Rukia says softly, yet urgently to Ichigo.

The couple walk away blushing furiously, but Isshin doesn't stop there.

"You can do it _all night long_! Save sleeping for the plane!"

"When we get back to Karakura Town I am going to deck him so hard," Ichigo promises Rukia as they are no longer able to hear Isshin due to the cheers of their guests.

Ichigo's arm is holding her close to his side, and he feels like his inner world must be as hot as a desert. He can practically hear Zangetsu.

_The weather forecast around here is no rain for a very long time. Thank you, Rukia._


	49. Most Eligible

_Most Eligible_

"Ichigo!" Keigo's voice shrieks loudly, and Ichigo quickly turns around. It isn't his usual yell that begs for Ichigo elbow him in the head.

"Is something wrong?" Ichigo asks his friend with concern.

"You will never believe it." Keigo says as he hands the school newspaper to Ichigo. Ichigo rolls his eyes but takes the paper and looks at the spot Keigo is pointing at frantically.

_Karakura High's Most Eligible Girl-Kuchiki Rukia_

Ichigo feels his mouth drop open at that headline. He scans the story.

_Never will you find a more enchanting girl than Kuchiki Rukia. She is beautiful, kind, polite, and thoughtful. Just listening to her voice which is like an angel's voice is enough to soothe the heart of any man. _

_After witnessing her save a child from being run over by a truck, we decided she is certainly worthy of being this year's most eligible girl at Karakura High. _

_We know there is a lot of speculation that she is not actually eligible, but we assure you that this isn't the case. Kuchiki Rukia is currently single. _

Ichigo can't read anymore. He scowls at the fact that the paper called her single.

"Is this a joke?" Ichigo asks as he slaps the paper back in Keigo's hands.

Ichigo is furious. He's supposed to be the only one who notices how amazing Rukia actually is, other people aren't supposed to know or realize how she shines more than any other girl in their school.

"I always knew Kuchiki-san was amazing!" Keigo says with a dreamy look in his eyes.

"Shut up." Ichigo says in a low threatening voice. Keigo's eyes widen at Ichigo's apparent anger.

"Why are you pissed? It's not like you and her are together or anything," Keigo points out, causing Ichigo to give him an even angrier glare.

Ichigo quickly walks away and has every intention of ignoring the damned newspaper.

Through the course of the day though, he of course finds it next to impossible to ignore it since boys are approaching Rukia in droves to congratulate her and see if she gives them a look of interest at all. It's all Ichigo can do not to punch someone in the face.

Rukia loves the attention too, and really oozes her fake schoolgirl charm as boys are practically falling over themselves to get a word in edgewise with her.

Plenty of girls notice that Kurosaki seems mighty sour over the breaking news, and there are plenty who are depressed about that since a lot of girls think he is secretly in love with her, considering how often they're seen together outside of school.

Rukia pays no mind to Ichigo, since she knows he hates it when she pulls her schoolgirl act. It's not like she can do anything else when she's here, she has to try to fit in so as to not create more distractions than what she and Ichigo already have. Even though the extra attention today is enjoyable to her, she wouldn't want it to be like this all of the time.

Besides, it's not her fault that the kid saw using kidou in her gigai. She had to use the memory modifier on him and she had set it a random memory since she didn't usually see him. His memory had shifted to seeing her save a child's life and he had decided to make her the top story by calling her the most eligible. She has no idea how he found out that she is single, but it's not like she can deny it without revealing she loves someone with her whole heart.

At lunchtime, Ichigo had watched from a distance as a crowd of boys adoringly waited their turn to talk to the mysterious and beautiful girl that had been the focus of the paper. He had clenched his fists angrily at the way they fawned over her. They were openly showering her with adoration and what pisses Ichigo off the most is that even though he cares about her a million times more than any of these fools, he can't show the kind of open admiration that the other guys his age are showing towards her.

"Kurosaki…you have to calm down. You're going to start drawing in hollows, you're oozing even more reiatsu than usual," Ishida says with a voice that well emphasizes his pity for Ichigo.

"Shut the hell up." Ichigo grows. He crosses his arms and looks like he just got shot when he hears one guy from where he stands.

"Kuchiki-san! What kind of guys are you attracted to?" The kid could be an announcer without a microphone he's so loud. Ichigo is walking closer to her before he can even put any thought into it. Sado and Ishida exchange surprised glances and hurry behind him as Rukia clears her throat to answer the obnoxiously loud question.

"I'm attracted to the kind of guy who finds family important, risks himself to help or save others, has courage, and a strong loyalty to his friends. I like the kind of guy who has a strong resolve and an unbelievable will to make things in the world right. I'd like to be with a guy who is smart, deep, complex, and he has to smile for me like he does for no other girl. I like a man who can keep a commitment and not wander from the relationship that he's in." Rukia answers in a clear and somewhat dreamy voice.

Ichigo moves closer to her.

"I can be that man!" Keigo screams as he charges forward. He never even saw Ichigo getting so close to her since he'd been so focused on Kuchiki-san.

Everybody's mouth drops open as Ichigo's fist meets Keigo's face and he flies back close to six meters away. He lays on the ground, moaning and groaning in pain.

Everybody is staring at him in total shock, but he doesn't focus on anybody other than Rukia. He's only about two meters from her.

"It sounded like you were describing somebody in particular," Ichigo says as he gives her a very serious stare. He can hardly breathe properly as she looks at him with a bit of surprise on her face, but also a hint of a smile.

"It did?" Rukia asks innocently, as her hint of a smile widens into a full blown smile. She crosses her arms, and doesn't take her eyes off of him.

"Are you saying you weren't describing someone in particular?" Ichigo asks her next. Rukia just stares at him for a moment.

"Why are you so curious?" Rukia asks as she keeps smiling at him. Ichigo feels his face heat up at that question, but he doesn't look away from her.

"Why won't you answer the question?" Ichigo challenges next.

"It could be describing someone, I have yet to decide if there's someone who actually has all of those qualities." Rukia tells him before she finally looks away. She can't keep staring him in the eyes or he'll soon be reading her mind with ease.

"Hey! Ichigo! I thought you didn't have anything going on with Kuchiki-san!" Keigo's voice stops the conversation and Ichigo turns to glare at his friend who's staggering towards him.

"I didn't. That doesn't mean I won't though." Ichigo says loudly enough to let all of the guys know that he isn't okay with their open ogling of Rukia. "If she was describing me, that is." Ichigo says, causing every other guy to look at Rukia hopefully. Rukia blushes. Why is he making her do this so publicly?

"Were you describing Kurosaki, Kuchiki-san?" Ishida calls out, causing both Rukia and Ichigo to go bright red.

Ichigo waits as Rukia's head turns towards him. When her eyes meet his and her head nods yes, Ichigo feels a huge amount of relief, more than what he would have imagined.

He gives her the special smile that he only ever gives to her and Rukia feels her knees go weak. The pair just stare at each other and everyone else watches, transfixed.

Ichigo finally takes the remaining steps to Rukia and grabs her hand. He pulls her away from the crowd.

"No! Tomorrow's issue was going to have Kurosaki as the most eligible guy in school! Now who will it be?" The newspaper editor is bawling on the ground and Sado hands him a tissue. The newspaper editor looks up, up, up until he finally sees Sado's face.

Ichigo drags Rukia all the way home so that he can finally kiss her for the very first time.

_The Next Day…_

"Kuchiki-san is no longer most eligible, Inoue-san is." Keigo says with excitement to the happy couple. Rukia grins as Ishida's mouth drops open and his eyes look panicked. She predicts he'll have a similar day to the one that Ichigo had the day before.

"I'll have to congratulate her," Rukia says with a grin. Ichigo smiles too.

"The most eligible guy is Sado." Keigo tells them with big eyes. Ichigo shakes his head.

"I feel sorry for him," Ichigo mutters under his breath. He looks down at Rukia who is no longer the most eligible girl in Karakura High, but the most eligible girl for him. It had been unexpectedly public, but at least guys weren't hoarding around her anymore.

He notices his friend being surrounded by girls and Ichigo shakes his head as he smiles.

_Better him than me._


	50. Kiss

_Kiss_

"Ichigo, have you ever kissed anybody before?" Rukia asks him suddenly as he's reading his book. Ichigo sets down his book and blushes at that question.

"Why do you want to know that?" He asks her nervously.

"I was remembering that time that Kon used your body to kiss Inoue and Tatsuki, and I was wondering if you have ever kissed yourself." Rukia explains as she pins him with a serious stare.

"I don't really want to talk about kissing." Ichigo tells her, a bit embarrassed that she'd ask about his lack of experience. Rukia doesn't like that answer and she jumps and lands in a sitting position on Ichigo's stomach. The air rushes out of his lungs unexpectedly at that.

"Answer my question, fool." Rukia tells him in a smug voice. Ichigo glares up at her.

"No. I haven't ever kissed anybody. Are you happy now?" Ichigo asks her, even though he's embarrassed. Rukia gets off of him slowly and walks over to the closet before she climbs in and gives him a happy grin.

"I'm glad." Rukia tells him, before she slides the door shut, causing Ichigo to sit there staring at the door for awhile. Why had she smiled like that?

Ichigo suddenly worries that maybe she's figured out that the only girl he wants to kiss is the one that's so close to him, and yet always seems so unreachable. He sighs and picks his book back up, even though he has a nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach that he can't ignore.

_I want to kiss Rukia_.

Ichigo blushes at that thought. He's been tempted before to try and kiss her but he's always chickened out.

Now that she's asked him this question though, it's all he can think about.

He wonders what it would feel like to hold her in his arms, and to feel her lips pressing against his own. He's sure it would feel so right and perfect, but he's also afraid of what it would mean if he kissed her. After all, she's a noble in Soul Society.

Sure, she might have acted like a kiss was no big deal when Kon was in his body doing it, but he suspects she acted like that to try and calm him down. She certainly has never greeted him with a kiss, as though it were no big deal.

_No she's greeted me with a kick in the face before, that was right before she hopped on my back, even though she had her Shinigami powers back and made me kill a hollow to help me get back my resolve._

Ichigo knows she is the reason he's been able to obtain some happiness with his life, and to come to grips with his mother's death. He can never thank her enough for the privilege that she had bestowed upon him when she had first given him her own Shinigami powers.

He falls into a restless sleep that night, and the next day, Rukia spends the next day acting like she never asked him about his history with kissing the night before. Of course, it's all Ichigo can think about when his eyes rest on her, but he doesn't dare tell her that.

He hates how one little question from her can bug him for a full day after the fact, and he's pretty sure it will still bug him the next day, and probably the day after that.

Once again, it's later in the evening, and Ichigo is reading when Rukia appears in front of him again. Ichigo slowly puts down the book and gives her a suspicious look.

"What?" Ichigo asks her, nervous since what she'd asked the night before had been so embarrassing.

"Has there ever been a girl you wanted to kiss, and didn't?" Rukia asks him tonight. Ichigo turns away from her.

"None of your business." Ichigo replies in a quiet voice. No way will he admit he's been imagining what it would be like to kiss her.

"Since it's none of my business, I should probably take that to mean that you've never felt the desire to kiss me." Rukia says in a clearly sad voice. Ichigo turns around.

"What would make you say that?" Ichigo asks as he feels bad for upsetting her.

"Because it would be my business if you had thought about doing it with me, wouldn't it?" Rukia asks him sadly.

"No, it still wouldn't be your business, my thoughts are private." Ichigo explains softly, even as he stares at her inviting lips.

"Would you still say that even if you knew that telling me would result in me kissing you?" Rukia asks him next. Ichigo swallows audibly as he stares up into her big blue eyes. He doesn't know how to answer her.

"I don't know." Ichigo finally says, since he can't think straight with all of this talk about kissing. No matter what she may think, he's still a teenage boy.

"Please let me know when you do know." Rukia says before climbing into his closet.

He stares at it.

_She made it sound like she does want to kiss me. I want to kiss her too. If we do though, how will that change things?_

Ichigo falls into a restless sleep, once again.

Rukia lays in the closet feeling irritated. She had practically told him that she wants to kiss him, and he had stared up at her with such a shocked expression.

Rukia doesn't know what to make of it. For a long time now, she's imagined what it would be like to kiss him, and to run her fingers through his bright orange hair.

She's been thinking about it so much that she's not sure how much longer she can go without trying to kiss him. She wants him to want her to kiss him though, which makes it that much harder.

He had acted like he was a bit afraid when she had confronted him about kissing the past two nights, but she knows it isn't all that uncommon for teenagers to have done such things. She's done her studying, she knows most sixteen year old boys have at least thought about kissing a girl. Many of them have already gone as far as to have sex at sixteen, or even younger according to Rukia's data.

The next day, after school, Rukia and Ichigo don't talk much. Ichigo keeps giving her strange looks though, and Rukia notices them. She doesn't know quite how to handle his uneasiness, and so she decides to finally break the ice and just be honest with him. She walks into his bedroom after his sisters have gone to bed and he looks up at her with a bit of worry showing on his face.

"Ichigo." Rukia says, and Ichigo meets her gaze.

"What?" Ichigo asks worried what she'll say next.

"I'm afraid I can't go another day without kissing you. If that bothers you, I can start staying at Inoue's apartment with her instead of here with you." Rukia says to him softly with a bit of a blush. "Inoue said that I could if I wanted to." She adds.

Ichigo swallows and looks up at her. He knows she doesn't really want to go to Inoue's, and he doesn't want her to go either.

"I don't want you to leave. I want you to come here." Ichigo says with red cheeks. Rukia sits down next to him on the bed.

"Ichigo?" Rukia asks with sudden nervousness from the warmth in his eyes.

"If I had known you wanted to kiss me, I'd have kissed you a long time ago." Ichigo whispers before he leans over and kisses her. Rukia responds enthusiastically and when they pull away from each other, they're both very breathless. They both can only stare into each other's eyes for a minute before Rukia can finally speak.

"I'm going to want a lot of those everyday from now on." Rukia says bossily.

"Me too." Ichigo says, before leaning in to kiss her again.


	51. Storage Room

_Storage Room_

Tatsuki and Mizuiro smile since their plan has seemed to work perfectly. They had come up with it two days ago when they noticed Ichigo and Rukia walking so close to each other when they didn't think anybody else was watching them. Neither one of them will just come out and say what they feel for the other.

Tatsuki had given Mizuiro a funny look. That was the first time they had ever walked home together since Inoue had been sick from school, and Mizuiro was in between girlfriends.

With summer break approaching, all of the equipment would need to be put away for physical education, and this was when they decided to put their plan into action. They had orchestrated their plot perfectly. Mizuiro had Ichigo in the storage shed putting away soccer balls, and Tatsuki asked Rukia to take in the volleyball net. The moment Rukia had been inside the shed with Ichigo, Mizuiro and Tatsuki had slammed the door shut and had pulled down the bar lock on the outside of it and had laughed their asses off.

"We'll let you out sooner or later!" Tatsuki had sung loudly enough for the pair inside to hear.

"We can't let anyone near this door." Mizuiro had told her with a smirk.

"Leave that to me," Tatsuki had said with a grin.

"Maybe we should leave them in there overnight," Mizuiro had said, tickled pink at his idea.

"Maybe," Tatsuki says, grinning at him.

_Inside the storage room…_

"What in the hell just happened?" Rukia yelps out as the door slams shut behind her and she's shut into the dark storage room. She pushes on the door but it won't budge.

"Rukia?" Ichigo's voice sounds behind her and Rukia turns and squints to try to see him.

"I didn't know you were in here," Rukia says softly. All of a sudden they hear Tatsuki singing that she'll let them out sooner or later.

"What is she thinking?" Rukia asks, flabbergasted.

"Who knows." Ichigo says with equal confusion, though it sounds like he's drawing closer to her.

"I can't see anything." Rukia says sullenly, and suddenly Ichigo bumps right into her.

"There you are." Ichigo says with a bit of embarrassment in his voice.

"You can't see either, can you?" Rukia asks him as she puts her hand on his arm.

"No." Ichigo says in a soft voice.

"We should probably sit until our eyes adjust so that we don't fall on our faces." Rukia tells him. She lets go of his arm to sit down, and she can hear him sitting directly in front of her.

"How long do you suppose they'll keep us locked in here?" Ichigo asks her next, feeling his heart race at the idea that they may be alone in here together for awhile.

"You know them better than I do, what do you think?" Rukia asks him back. She really doesn't understand why they locked her up in here with Ichigo in the first place. She's sure that if they knew she sleeps in his bedroom every night, they wouldn't have thought this was so funny.

"I really don't know." Ichigo tells her as he blushes. He's glad for the darkness when he feels his cheeks heat up.

"Are you okay? You sound kind of nervous." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo feels himself blushing harder.

"Aren't you nervous? Being locked in this dark room with me?" Ichigo asks her with a bit of surprise evident in his voice.

"I'm more comfortable with you than with anyone else. Besides, how many nights have we fallen asleep in the same room together?" Rukia asks him in confusion.

"It's not like we share a bed though," Ichigo argues sensibly. "You only sleep in my closet." Ichigo says with a hint of wistfulness in his voice.

"I guess. It's still the same room. I always feel very close to you when I sleep in your closet." Rukia says, not realizing how this situation is making Ichigo feel. She's simply being factual.

"You do?" Ichigo whispers as he tries to comprehend what that means.

"The way you let your reiatsu leak out, it sometimes feels like you're in the closet with me." Rukia admits with a smile.

"You never told me that before." Ichigo tells her, embarrassed once again.

"You never asked." Rukia points out. "I did tell you when I'm here that your house is the only place I can really sleep though. The feeling of your reiatsu is so comforting when I'm away from Soul Society." Rukia tells him with a soft laugh. "You could say that your house is my home away from home." Rukia adds as she keeps smiling.

It's so easy to talk to him in this darkness, without having to meet his gaze. She doesn't feel at all uneasy or uncomfortable sharing with him like this. It's strange because ordinarily they would never have a discussion like this. She wonders if it has anything to do with being locked in the storage room with him.

"And I told you that you make the rain stop." Ichigo says, capturing her attention.

"What exactly did you mean by that anyways?" Rukia asks him when he brings that up.

"My inner world…it was in a bad state. Zangetsu couldn't stand how it would rain so easily when I was sad, and you are the only one who could make it stop…and you did." Ichigo tells her quietly. Rukia gasps. She doesn't even think he realizes what he just revealed to her.

"I affect…your inner world?" Rukia asks him softly and slowly. She hadn't realized before just how important she really was to him, and now he had just revealed it so clearly. Ichigo lets out an embarrassed laugh.

"I'm afraid so." He tells her, owning up to the truth. Rukia just sits there in shock for a minute.

"If we were a couple…do you have any idea what I would hear from people in Soul Society? I can already hear several Shinigami laughing and calling you a boy." Rukia tells him quietly as she considers what being a couple would be like.

"You tell them that I can do what guys their age can do." Ichigo tells her firmly as he feels a smile breaking out onto his face. Rukia giggles.

"You can?" She asks him as she feels him scooting closer to her. Her heart beats in excitement as she can feel him getting closer. He nuzzles her cheek and then locates her lips to kiss them.

"I can…if you let me." Ichigo whispers into her ear. Rukia shivers at the breath so close to her skin.

"Only if you say I'll never lose you." Rukia tells him breathlessly, waiting.

"I swear it." Ichigo says as he pulls her into his arms. He begins to kiss her passionately. He loves it, he has never enjoyed anything more. He keeps kissing her until he finally pushes her onto her back onto the floor and leans over to kiss her some more.

He's laying on top of her kissing her passionately with his hands running up her skirt when the storage door is finally opened and Sado. Ishida, Inoue, Tatsuki, Mizuiro, and Keigo are all standing there, and their mouths all gape open at the sight of Ichigo all over Rukia, kissing her as though they're about to go further. The couple gasp and open their eyes to give equally horrified stares at the group who has just caught them red handed making out.

They both turn bright red as everybody except for Inoue laughs. Mizuiro and Tatsuki slap hands at the success of their plan, and Sado looks really amused. Ishida actually grins as he pushes his glasses up his nose, and Keigo can't stop laughing.

"You can't deny being a couple anymore!" Keigo shouts out, still laughing.

Ichigo and Rukia look at each other and smile. They slowly pull apart from one another and look embarrassed and happy at the same time.

"I wouldn't even try." Rukia finally says, still blushing to the group.

"Congratulations…finally." Sado says with a knowing look at Ichigo, who nods at his friend in appreciation.

"Thanks." Ichigo says.

"If we had given them a little bit longer, we may have witnessed them conceiving the next generation of Kurosaki terrors!" Tatsuki says with a chuckle, causing Rukia and Ichigo to blush again.

"Thank goodness we got you to open the door when we did," Ishida says to Sado after turning white at Tatsuki's comment.

"You make a cute couple." Mizuiro says with a smile. Ichigo stands and grabs Rukia's hand.

Everyone (except Inoue) keeps laughing as Ichigo drags Rukia off with him. Rukia and Ichigo don't stop blushing for almost five minutes after they get out of hearing distance of their friends.


	52. Sexy Noises

_Sexy Noises_

Ichigo is awakened in his sleep by a foreign noise to him. He sits up in bed and he hears the noise again. It sounds like a woman in the throes of passion. He rubs his eyes. There shouldn't be any noises like that around his house. His eyes widen when he hears the passionate feminine moan again, and he realizes where it's coming from. The closet.

Ichigo finally stands and slowly walks towards the closet as the moaning continues. He knows nobody is in there with her, and he wonders if she's awake, and if she is, what on earth is she doing in his closet? Ichigo blushes as his mind immediately closes in on the thought of her masturbating. He feels himself getting turned on as he imagines her doing that in his closet.

Ichigo stands there a long time, listening to her moaning in pleasure. He wishes he knew whether or not she was awake.

"Oh!" Rukia's voice sounds more thick with passion now that he's right there in front of her door.

He never gets up the courage to slide open the door, afraid of what would be the result if he does.

Rukia flips over to her other side as she dreams of Ichigo sucking on her toes, licking her legs, licking her stomach and her neck. She feels like her body is on fire and she never knew Ichigo could look so perfect when he was naked. She dreams that he takes his tongue and runs it in between her legs before he slips inside of her, two becoming one.

When Rukia wakes up in the morning, she blushes at the dreams she had of Ichigo. She has no idea she was moaning in her sleep, and so she pops out of the closet the same way she always does, after she hears Ichigo call her name. Except today, his voice sounds kind of funny when he says her name on the other side of the door. Rukia slides open the closet, adorned in her school wear, and hops lightly to the ground.

Ichigo is staring at her, but she's not looking at him to notice. She brushes off her uniform and grabs her bag from inside of the closet.

"See you at school," Rukia says before she hops out the window. She hadn't looked at him again after she had hopped out of the closet, and so she never noticed that his eyes never left her.

That night, when Ichigo lays down to go to bed, he stares at the closet as he remembers the noises he heard coming from Rukia from inside of there. She had sounded really sexy as she had moaned, and he blushes when he again wonders whether or not she was awake, and he wonders whether or not she actually masturbates.

He's always been terrified of masturbating, ever since she popped into his life. It's not as though he has any true privacy in his bedroom anymore, and he shudders at the idea of her ever catching him in the middle of doing that.

He's curious to know why she was making those noises, the ones that haunted his dreams the night before. He hates to think that she was thinking of anybody besides himself, and that realization surprises him, since he'd never considered that thought before yesterday, before he realized that maybe she has secret desires that he doesn't know about.

It had always been him and Rukia, and then their friends. She's his other half, the only person he's ever been connected at the soul with. The only person who can determine rain or shine in his inner world. They're a pair. A duo, partners, best friends, but more than that she's in his heart. He'd be lost without her in his life.

He never imagined that she might yearn for a passionate encounter, and if she ever did yearn for that, he finds himself hoping she'd come to him before she'd go to anybody else. Even though they've never done anything like that before, he would still hope she'd come to him.

He falls asleep to these thoughts, and is once again awakened by Rukia moaning in a very sensual way. He can't help but to do as he did the night before as he quietly moves over next to the closet door and listens to her through the door. He's not surprised when he feels his body reacting, the sounds she's making turn him on more than he would have ever believed possible.

He places his palm up against the closet door longingly, but once again, he lacks the courage to open the door and see for himself exactly what's going on in there. He feels his body tingle as she moans more loudly and he's frustrated as hell that he can't do anything about it. She finally quiets down, and he walks back to his bed, gets in, and falls asleep.

Rukia wakes up a short while later, heart racing from her very wild and passionate dream, where she and Ichigo were making love on a pool table. She sits up and draws her knees up to her chest and wraps her arms around her knees.

The dream had been…heavenly. She sighs as she remembers just how perfect it felt when he pressed his body up against hers in their dream. It's always felt nice when she rides his back, and Rukia knows she would never push Ichigo away from her if he wanted to offer her his touch. She never has yet. Every time he's ever touched her, it made it feel as if an electrical charge was going through her body. She loves that feeling.

She also is frustrated at these dreams, since they seem to taunt her with tempting encounters with Ichigo, so much so that now she really wants to go crawl into that bed with him and get as close to his body as she possibly can. She feels her muscles tensing up as she forces herself to stay where she's at. More than anything, she'd like to make the wondrous dreams a reality.

She finally calms down and lays back down to fall asleep.

When Ichigo wakes up in the morning, he finds he's very irritable. He wonders if it's because he's been getting so turned on in the middle of the night by Rukia making sexy noises causing him to desire her intensely, yet he does nothing to make that desire subside. He does not want to get caught pleasuring himself. Not by his father, not by his sisters, and certainly not by Rukia.

He quickly gets dressed and calls for Rukia to exit the closet. She glances at him before she hops out of the closet, and she quickly grabs her bag so that she doesn't have to meet his eyes. She's afraid her desire will be plain for him to see if she looks at him for too long.

"I'm heading out. I'll see you at school," Rukia says softly before she hops gracefully out of the window. Ichigo growls in frustration as he watches her from the window, walking away.

"This is going to drive me insane." Ichigo grumbles before he leaves his room.

When Ichigo is getting ready to go to bed that night, he paces around in frustration. After obsessing about it all day, he knows he can't let another night go by without finding out what is going on when Rukia makes those noises, and he decides that if she makes them tonight, he'll open the door on her.

Rukia blushes as she enters Ichigo's room and sees him laying on his bed, scowling. She has had some very exciting dreams the past couple of nights, and now when she looks at him like that on the bed, she has the strongest urge to get into that bed with him, but she doesn't. She gives him a sideways look before she heads over into her usual sleeping spot in his closet.

Ichigo watches her climb in and shut the door. He could have sworn she had just blushed when she'd entered the room and seen him, but he wasn't sure if it was a trick of the light or not. He rubs his palm against his forehead in frustration as he can perfectly recall the sexy noises she has been making in that closet for the past two nights.

How is he supposed to think straight when she does stuff like that?

He doesn't bother to try and fall asleep since he's too anxious to do so. This time he's awake when her moans start up. He walks over to the closet, not so quietly this time, to give her a chance to cover herself up if she's awake and masturbating. He's glad it's dark in the room and his own arousal won't be so noticeable when he confronts her.

When he gets to the door, she lets out a really excited long moan and Ichigo slides open the door. He's relieved and also a tiny bit disappointed that she's obviously sleeping. He stares at her as her face looks incredibly cute as she lets out another enticing moan.

She's wearing Yuzu's pajamas which are totally not sexy, but the top has ridden up a bit and he has a nice view of her flat and toned stomach and abs. He sucks in his breath quickly as he lets his gaze rest on her exposed midriff for a minute, but his attention is back on her face when she lets out a pleased little giggle before she moans again. Then it hits him like a brick.

"Oh yeah…Ichigo!" Rukia belts out so loudly that she wakes up instantly, though she doesn't realize she woke herself up. Ichigo jumps as she immediately sits up and realizes he's looking right at her. Her shirt falls back into place, covering up her midriff.

"Um…" Ichigo says nervously as he backs away a little bit.

"Ichigo?" Rukia asks him groggily. "What are you doing there?" She asks in confusion. Ichigo is surprised she's not biting mad.

"I heard you making a lot of noise in the closet and I came to investigate," Ichigo says as he takes another step back. Rukia gasps at that. What kinds of noises had she been making in her sleep as she had sexual dreams about him? She hops out of the closet so quickly that it makes his head spin. He backs up all the way until he reaches his bed, and sits down as she advances towards him.

"Lately, I've been dreaming about you." Rukia tells him softly until she's right in front of him. Ichigo gulps nervously.

_She's so close_.

"What kind of dreams?" Ichigo finally forces himself to ask her as he looks up at her. He's still shocked that she doesn't look at all angry with him.

"The kind of dreams where we're touching one another in many different ways, without any of our clothes on." Rukia answers in a voice that sounds amazed. Ichigo's eyes widen at her candor.

"Really," Ichigo asks in a hoarse voice as he looks at her.

"Yeah. The strangest part though, is how it all felt so right." Rukia whispers as she places a hand on his cheek.

"That shouldn't seem strange. It should only seem strange if you're thinking it would feel right with someone else," Ichigo mutters at her.

"I'm glad you feel that way, because now I'm ready to experience it for real." Rukia tells him as she stares at him with longing evident in her eyes.

Ichigo feels his breath catch in his throat when she says that. He just stares at her for a moment before he reaches out and grabs her around the waist and pulls her into his bed with him.

"All you had to do was say so." Ichigo whispers in her ear before he kisses her.

_Later On…_

"That was way better than my dreams." Rukia murmurs as she pulls him close and relishes for real what it's like to be pressed up against him without any clothes on.

"I'm glad," Ichigo whispers with a smile.

_Partner, best friend, a duo, and now a couple. I have it all with Rukia._


	53. As Requested: Sexy Noises 2

**A/N- Two notes this time, the first being that if anyone finds the stories I write to be uncomfortable or embarrassing to read, I'd like to remind you that this series is rated M and nobody is forcing you to read it. I am certainly not embarrassed by what I put out for you all, I would not post something I thought was an embarrassment. What you have seen is my style for one shots and it's unlikely to change much, since it is my preferred style. To those who have expressed their appreciation, I want you to know that's what keeps me inspired to write more for you all.**

**Secondly, this one shot is done by request as a reversal of the last chapter. It is dedicated to the reviewer who requested it, and I hope you all enjoy it.**

**Theresa Crane**

_Sexy Noises 2_

Rukia's eyes open and she isn't sure what time it is, or what caused her to wake up. She can tell that no light is streaming in through the cracks of the closet, and so she assumes it's still the middle of the night.

She pulls her spirit phone out of her pocket and is surprised that no warnings are flashing for a hollow being nearby.

_What woke me up then?_

The answer comes immediately. She hears Ichigo making a strange sound, unlike what she's heard from him in the past and she slowly slides the closet door open and peers out into the semi dark room. she can see a bit because of the moonlight.

She eases herself off of the shelf in the closet where she typically sleeps and soundlessly lands on the floor. She walks silently over to the bedside, as Ichigo continues to make strange muffled noises into his pillow.

She watches in confusion as he flips over, facing her and lets out a much more clear moan. It sounds as though he just had a taste of the best cake in the world, the way he's carrying on.

Rukia momentarily lets her mind wander over various desserts that she has yet to try when he makes the noise again, pulling her away from her thoughts. He isn't scowling like usual. She stares at his face as he lays there looking so open and…_innocent_. The realization is surprising since that was one of the last words she would have used to describe him three hours ago.

_Stubborn_? Yes. _Strong_? Of course. _Determined_? Most definitely. _Open_? Not so much, although she's seen it on rare occasions. _Innocent though_? Even though she knows that he fits the definition of innocent, it's just not a word she'd use to describe him, since it sounds almost insulting.

Rukia could tell a long time ago, by the way he acted when Kon had pressed his lips up to Ichigo's classmates that Ichigo was hopelessly inexperienced. He hadn't even wanted to know what had happened in the books she had read. That had been a dead giveaway.

Even though she feels the desire to always want to be around him, she's never really felt any need to corrupt him. She rather likes that he's inexperienced, since she is the same way. She is inexperienced by choice though. She has always believed that intimate relationships should be taken very seriously, and for that reason she has waited for the right man.

She stares down at the one she knows to be the right man as he sleeps. She's known it for a long time now, that he is the man she keeps in her heart. She knows he feels the same way about her, even if he hasn't consciously realized it, or come out and said so.

"Oh god…" Ichigo mutters in a somewhat breathless voice. Rukia's eyes widen at that.

_What kind of dream is he having?_

"Wow," Rukia mutters under her breath as he flips over to his back. Her eyes widen in understanding when she sees the way his blanket is raised up at his midsection. She blushes when she realizes he's most likely having an erotic dream.

"Why did we wait so long?" Ichigo's voice is so quiet, Rukia is barely able to make out the words. He starts to stir in his sleep and she dashes for the closet, dives in as quietly as possible and closes the door as swiftly as she can and lays there blushing.

_I hope he was dreaming about me._

Rukia knows she wouldn't want to find out that he had dreamed of anybody else while saying something like that in the midst of it. Rukia closes her eyes, but has a hard time falling back asleep.

When Ichigo wakes up in the morning, his first instinct is to smile, until his father flies into the room with his foot aimed at Ichigo's head. Ichigo barely dodges his father's morning greeting and he lands a kick into his father's back at his early morning intrusion.

"Get out now!" Ichigo roars before his father scampers out of the room. Ichigo scratches his head and lets out an aggravated sigh. He quickly changes into his uniform and knocks on the closet door.

"Rukia." Ichigo says to get her out of there. She opens the door and hops out onto the floor. She turns to look at him, and Ichigo just looks back at her as she searches his face for a moment before she walks over to the open window.

"See you at school." Rukia says in a low voice before she hurries out. Ichigo scratches his head again and sighs.

"What's her problem?" He wonders out loud before he heads out of his room.

_That night…_

Rukia isn't confused when she's woken up this time. She had wondered before she'd fallen asleep whether or not she'd be woken up by him again. She doesn't hesitate this time. She slides open the closet door and quickly hops out and walks over to his side.

He lets out a short little pleased moan, and Rukia feels her heart jump a little at the sound of it. Her eyes soften a bit as she looks at his face. She finds him to be very attractive, and perfectly made. She lets out a dreamy little sigh that she hadn't realized was bubbling under the surface and she feels a really fierce amount of desire when he suddenly makes a very sexy growling noise. She feels a shiver make its way throughout her entire body at that sound.

She wonders what he would do if she just climbed in. It would ruin everything if he sat up and said "Rukia" in the way she can so perfectly imagine him saying as he gives her a wide eyed and confused look. Trust Ichigo to be the one man alive who wouldn't know what to do with a lusty girl suddenly appearing in his bed.

She lets out another sigh, but this one isn't at all dreamy. It's a sigh of pure frustration. Sometimes she wonders if she missed her chance to be with him in a romantic way, and that thought always scares the hell out of her.

_If I had handled things differently when he saved me in Soul Society, we might have already had our first kiss._

Rukia beats herself up mentally for several minutes before she realizes he's no longer making any noises. She heads into the closet and closes the door. She can't let herself worry about the fact that she might have missed her chance to make their relationship something more, because if she lets herself think about that too long, she might start to get emotional and cry.

_These damned gigais. They're the reason I get like this when I come here. It isn't Ichigo. It can't be, because I am in complete control of my emotions. Ichigo will always be fighting with me. And he will realize that our time is still going to come. I believe in him. I will continue to do so._

_Control. Regain control, and remember you're a Kuchiki for crying out loud. What would ni-sama say?_

With a lot of effort and willpower, Rukia manages to gain control of her emotions and manages to actually look stoic. She may not feel it completely on the inside, but it's no longer evident on the outside.

She falls asleep with dreams of Ichigo and her fighting hollows together, and for some reason, they're both really happy, smiling widely at one another as they demolish one hollow after another. She finds her comfort zone in this dream, and she wakes up feeling pretty tired from having been awakened two nights in a row.

When Ichigo first sees Rukia in the morning, he can immediately sense that something is bothering her. He doesn't question it though, because he already knows she won't tell him what it is. He's not sure how he knows that, but he knows it to be an absolute certainty that she won't share whatever is bugging her. She'd probably be pissed that he noticed when she's obviously trying so hard to hide it.

When she leaves in the exact same manner as the day before, he sighs again. Rukia had barely spoken to him the night before. If only she would be as nice to him as she has been to him in his dreams for the past two nights.

In his dreams, she focuses completely on him and looks at him like he really matters to her. It's totally different from the way she's been avoiding is eyes in real life. She's playful and naughty, but she's still Rukia in his dreams. He's positive that she's capable of being like she's been in his dreams, if she'd just open up to him.

Ichigo lets out a sardonic laugh at that thought. How can he expect her to open up, when he's been so bad at it himself? His meaningful words always seem to be taken so casually, maybe because he isn't blunt about what he's saying. He had understood exactly what Rukia had been telling him when she shouted at him that she keeps him in her heart.

_I keep you in my heart too. In my soul too. Without you, I'd have been killed several times by now. The first night we met, the time my head almost got blown off by a cero, and when the sand monster in Hueco Mundo was about to devour me. I know I like to say I owe you, but really I want to repay you. The only way for me to do that is to protect you forever._

Ichigo scowls at the romantic turn his thoughts have taken. What's wrong with him? Have the dreams the past two nights affected him that much? What condition will he be in tomorrow if he has similar dream tonight?

_That night…_

Rukia opens her eyes, and once again she knows it's the middle of the night. She lets out a sigh before she goes to stare at the boy whose face she's been avoiding a lot the past two days. She feels the familiar ping of excitement zigzag throughout her body when she sees his sweet sleeping face, devoid of the usual scowl he typically wears.

_You're getting too soft, Kuchiki._

Rukia hears the voice of reason in her head and she ignores it as she continues to look at Ichigo. She reaches out to put her fingers through his hair, but she stops before she can touch him and draws her hand back.

_That would be going too far._

If only she could ignore the pangs of longing as easily as she ignores the voice in her head telling her that she shouldn't be standing here staring at him like this since she can't meet his eye for more than two seconds when he's awake. Well she _had_ been able to, up until he'd had these dreams and had caused her body and brain to go completely haywire.

"Rukia…" Ichigo says in a soft and lusty voice. Rukia feels her breath catch in her throat and she stares at him, openmouthed.

"Ichigo…" Rukia says it in a tiny whisper. "How am I supposed to stay logical and reasonable when you go and say my name like that?" She asks in a tiny aching voice.

It's as though he heard her, even though her voice had been as quiet as the wind rushing through the drapes, he opens his eyes and looks right at her, as she's staring down at him in a bit of awe.

Ichigo notices instantly that the look in her eyes is different from usual. It seems as though she's actually in a very passive mood. He feels a rush of confidence that he doesn't normally have. He knows that if he reaches out to her _right now_, she won't respond violently.

"Rukia," Ichigo whispers, and Rukia is amazed that the scowl she had expected to appear on his face at any second seems like it's not going to show up at all. She can't speak for a moment as he stares up at her with an intense look in his eyes. She finally realizes that they're staring at each other in silence and she blushes.

"I…thought I heard you, and so I came to check it out." Rukia mutters nervously as she feels very exposed under his penetrating gaze. She starts to turn back towards the closet, but Ichigo stops her in her tracks.

"Don't go." Ichigo whispers. Rukia jerks her head back around to look at him as though he's completely lost his mind.

"What?" Rukia asks, her voice wavering under the pressure. Ichigo slides out of his bed and takes one big step to be standing right behind her. He places his hands on her shoulders and guides her over to the bed.

"Stay." Ichigo whispers as she's facing the bed. Rukia looks up at him with uncertainty and he lowers his face to her and brushes his lips against hers very briefly. "Please?" Ichigo asks in a breathless whisper.

_I can't say no to that. I could never say no to that._

Rukia nods her head and climbs into his bed. She shivers in excitement when he pulls her up against him and she realizes they fit together perfectly like pieces of a puzzle.

He tightens his hold on her and she sighs happily before she turns to face him, and he loosens his grip to allow her the freedom to shift. His eyes are open when she looks into them.

"Am I really here with you?" Rukia asks him with big wondrous eyes.

He answers her with a kiss.

_Why did we wait so long to finally do this?_


	54. As Requested: Lemonade

**A/N-Rukia and Ichigo are already a couple for this one shot, and I decided to make them mad at Kon a bit. I had two separate requests to do a lemon, one in a review, and one in a PM. This chapter is dedicated to the both of you who requested it on the same day. Enjoy!**

Lemonade

"Ichi-ni how come you don't want to eat with us?" Yuzu asks as Ichigo has gathered a huge plateful of food and is moving quickly to leave the room.

"I'm working on a project for school. Make sure you don't bother me tonight." Ichigo says firmly to his family. He sees his father smirking at him and Ichigo glares at him. "That goes double for you old man, stay out of my way!" Ichigo says in a low and serious voice. His father laughs loudly.

"I understand how important those school projects can be, you have my full support, I won't disturb you." His father says it sincerely, but his wiggling eyebrow makes it seem like a joke. His father is well aware that Rukia recently came back, and that his son had finally made a move.

"Whatever." Ichigo mutters as he heads back up to his room. His scowl is practically gone as he enters his room where Rukia is sitting on his bed smiling. Ichigo smiles at the picture she makes as he walks in and uses his shoulder to slam the door shut.

"We should go around erasing our classmates memories tonight." Rukia says to Ichigo as she sets down her chopsticks. Ichigo sighs. He absolutely hates jumping in his classmates rooms as they sleep. He will refuse to go in the girls bedrooms. He knows Rukia will have to deal with that.

"Yeah, I don't need anybody being an ass to me over Kon's behavior today." Ichigo looks over at Kon, who is hunched over working busily on Ichigo's homework. It was his punishment for being a pervert in class today. Ichigo had been mortified when he realized that Kon had not acted much like Ichigo in class today.

"It couldn't be helped, that large group of hollow showed up." Rukia says with a sympathetic look.

"Good thing you're working or I would have had to hand you over to Yuzu tonight instead of just locking you in a drawer without your body." Ichigo glares at the offending stuffed animal. "It's your fault Rukia and I have to go on extra duty to erase our classmates memories of your disgusting leering." Kon smartly doesn't say a word, and keeps working.

"I would have never thought you'd cheat in school Ichigo," Rukia says, pulling Ichigo's gaze away from Kon and onto her. He realizes he's never turned in work that he didn't complete himself before.

"You're right, normally I would never cheat. I just didn't think of it as cheating, since he's the one who attended class, even though he didn't pay much attention to anything other than that fool Inoue."

"I thought she was your friend." Rukia says in clear confusion.

"I guess that's what I'd call her. It doesn't mean we're close, though. I never have felt completely comfortable in her presence. It's an entirely different friendship from the types I share with the rest of my friends. With them, I'm always happy to hang out with them and can always find something in common to talk about. With her, it's more like she's a friend by default, since she gained unusual powers and came to help rescue you in Soul Society, and since she's your friend.." Ichigo admits freely.

"How did that happen anyways?" Rukia asks as she peers at Ichigo curiously.

"To tell the truth, I'm not entirely sure. The night I was supposed to break into Soul Society, Inoue, Sado, and Ishida shocked me by showing up too. It was Urahara and Yoruichi. While Urahara was training me, Ishida trained alone with his grandfather's special glove, and Yoruichi trained Sado and Inoue. What I do know, is that Inoue told me that you were her friend and that she was worried about you too, but she told me that the day after you disappeared. She found me after school and asked me directly what had happened to you. Sado said you had saved his life once too and Ishida said he couldn't let it end with him losing to Shinigami." Ichigo explains as best he can.

"I'll never forget the way I felt on the bridge, after ni-sama had attacked Ganju and you showed up on that bridge in Soul Society. It was the same except more emotional when you saved me the second time at the Soukyoku. Both times, you were breathtaking." Rukia says in a near whisper.

"I'll never forget that both times when I came to rescue you, I got called an idiot." Ichigo says as he rolls his eyes and sets the plate on his desk before grabbing up Kon coming back to her side and sitting down. He casually tosses Kon out of the open window, causing Kon to scream angrily up at Ichigo from the outside, but Ichigo is only focused on Rukia.

"I was so worried about you. I was terrified that they'd kill you." Rukia whispers.

"I was worried about you too. Don't ever think you're doing me a favor by dying for me Rukia. You scare the hell out of me every time you risk your neck for me." Ichigo says as he scoots onto the bed and lays down. After a moment he pulls her down against him, holding her close.

"That's my line, fool!" Rukia sputters, as she squirms to turn around. Ichigo doesn't stop her, and when she's facing him, he quickly plants a kiss on her lips.

"I live to protect you, Rukia. You should know that by now." Ichigo says softly before closing his eyes and kissing the hell out of her passionately. Rukia lets him kiss her, but pulls away to get her say in.

" We'll fight side by side. We'll always be the kind of pair that's saving each other. Neither one of us can stand the thought of the other one dying so it's a fact we'll both have to deal with." Rukia says reasonably. Ichigo sighs.

"You always were stubborn." He says, squeezing her in his arms again.

"I don't compare to you, the king of stubborn!" Rukia retorts with a very unladylike snort.

Rukia?" Ichigo asks her quietly. Rukia meets his stare.

"Wha-?" Rukia starts to ask, but Ichigo pulls her face forward by pushing on the back of her head and kisses her again, more deeply than the last kiss. This time, Rukia doesn't pull away. She wraps her arms around him and returns his kiss with equal passion. She starts rubbing her legs against his too, which is turning him on more than he could have imagined it could.

Something as simple as her running her smooth legs against his own is just hot. He move his hands to her lower back as he tugs her in even closer, so that their middles meet. They don't stop kissing though. If anything, they both get more into the kissing, with their hands moving all over each other's bodies.

They both feel like their bodies are on fire. Rukia's little girly moans during the kissing are slowly driving him insane. He doesn't realize he's groaning during the kissing and that those are as sexy for her as her moans are for him.

He does notice when her fingernails start digging into his arms, mainly because he's located a sensitive spot on her body. Ichigo starts to kiss her neck and then he finds that spot behind her ear. He feels her body reacting to this spot of its own volition.

He doesn't really have time to feel proud of himself though, because Rukia has just slid her hands down the front of his pants and he reacts with swift passion. He rolls on top of her and then moves up off of her so that he's balanced over her on his elbows and knees.

This makes it much easier access for her, and they both stare into each others eyes as Rukia successfully removes his pants and is able to easily slip her hands beneath the waistband of his boxers. She watches as his eyes roll up into the back of his head as she takes hold of his most sensitive spot. It seems it doesn't take much for him to respond to being touched there.

"_Rukia_," Ichigo moans as he pushes his lips back onto hers to show her how much this touching is turning him on.

He's still over her, kissing her, but then he feels her pull one hand out and push up against his chest. He removes his lips and half opens his eyes to look at her. Rukia grins at him.

"Maybe this will be easier if you lay down." Rukia says in a voice that sounds so sexy to him at the moment. He quickly lays next to her as she sits up next to him, and she starts yanking on his pants and boxers. He lifts his butt to make it easier for her to pull them down.

Now she has the freedom to touch him however she likes. It's not long though, before his entire body starts to shake a little, and his stomach keeps flexing unintentionally from the pleasure her hands are bringing to him.

Ichigo sits up with enthusiasm to relieve her of her clothing. Rukia smiles when he looks appreciatively at her naked body. He tries to roll on top of her again, but she doesn't allow that.

"You stay right where you are." Rukia orders him with a satisfied grin at the way his eyes pop out a little. They've only made love a couple of times, and both times, he was on top of her. He feels a tingle run through his body as he stares up at her. She looks very pleased with their current positions and so he decides to let her do as she pleases.

"What do you want to do to me?" Ichigo whispers with anticipation.

"You'll see." Rukia whispers before she kisses his chest. She slowly moves down, and kisses the faint love trail under his navel. She lets her tongue dart down a bit lower and Ichigo flinches as a reflex when her tongue finds his most sensitive place.

She grabs hold of him and she lets her tongue travel around the head of his erection several times before she straightens up and positions herself over him. He looks at her with his eyes glazed over in thick passion, and Rukia feels the same desire she sees in his eyes.

"Oh my god." Ichigo groans out as she lowers herself slowly down and lets him slide into her from the bottom. It's a different sensation for her, being on top of him like this.

"Ichigo…I love you," Rukia murmurs out before she uses her legs to start slowly bouncing up and down on top of him. She gradually increases her speed and watches with fascination the looks of pleasure he's making at her efforts.

"Rukia…Rukia!" Ichigo can feel himself starting to lose control, and he grabs her by the waist to make her stay still for an instant so that he can catch his breath, and maybe make it last a little bit longer.

"Ichigo?" Rukia asks him as she looks down at him breathing deep with his eyes closed.

"I love you Rukia." Ichigo says softly as he lets go of her waist and takes a firm hold of her thighs.

Rukia is delighted that with his assistance, she is able to bounce on top of him even faster and harder than she was able to all by herself. It feels wondrous to have him inside of her like this, it makes her feel so close to him, and she wants to show him with her touch, how much she truly loves him.

She feels the waves of passion building up as he keeps bouncing her faster and harder on top of him. They're both moaning and drowning in the pleasure of each other.

"Rukia…I'm going to explode in a second." Ichigo tells her in a heated voice.

She doesn't pull off of him, and he feels a bit of shock at that. She smiles down at him as she keeps on moving up and down over him.

"I want to feel the explosion." She tells him in an excited voice. Those words are his undoing. He lets out a long pleasurable moan as he feels himself spurting inside of her.

She collapses on top of him and he winds his arms around her and lets out a long excited breath. His heart is still beating wildly from the way she made love to him on top.

"You are amazing." He tells her softly before he gives her a long and grateful kiss for what she just did for him.

"You are too," Rukia says with a smile. She had definitely felt the same waves of passion that he did, even if it wasn't quite as obvious as his was. She loves the feeling of making love to him. She doesn't want to even let go of him right now. She takes a deep breath and lets her mind go over what they just did again.

"It's more amazing than I ever thought it could be." Ichigo tells her with a bit of embarrassment. It's still fairly new for him. Rukia smiles at that, and she feels bad that she'll have to burst his bubble.

"It would be completely perfect if we didn't have to go erase everyone's memories." Rukia says into his ear. Ichigo groans not so happily this time.

"You had to remind me." Ichigo mutters with frustration. Rukia pulls away from him and sits up, giving him the full frontal view of her body as she gives him a sexy little smile.

"I know how to cheer you up," Rukia says with her smile growing wider. "Round two when we get back." Rukia says suggestively. She laughs out loud when he slides out from under her, throws on his boxers and then pops his soul form out of his body.

"We should hurry." Ichigo says with a happy little smile. Rukia grins.

"Yes, the faster we get done, the faster we can come back to your bed." Rukia says in agreement. They shunpo out of the room, and both look forward to their next time in Ichigo's bed.


	55. As Requested: Lemonade 2

**A/N-I was requested to do a part two, so here it is, please enjoy round 2 for Ichigo and Rukia! Enjoy!**

_Lemonade 2_

Rukia visits Inoue's house last. She has a much more powerful memory modifier than what she used to have available, when she first met Ichigo. Rukia is anxious for round two to happen, as she hops into Inoue's apartment, but then the unexpected occurred.

As Rukia approached Inoue to fix her memory, she had been stopped dead in her tracks, by Inoue sleep talking.

"Kurosaki-kun, you can do anything you want to me. I won't say no. As long as we're together, I'll be happy." Inoue's voice is loud at first, but it gets softer as her sentence progresses. Rukia's mouth is hanging open.

_Inoue dreams about Ichigo? Why does that piss me off so much? _

Rukia walks over to the girl and successfully removes her memories of Kon acting flirtatiously with her.

_I'm glad Ichigo made me go to the girls houses._

Four. That's how many girls she knows for sure like Ichigo from school. Inoue's had been the most unsettling, since Rukia hadn't ever even noticed the girl's growing feelings for Ichigo.

_I'm always so focused on Ichigo, I often fail to notice important things about the others._

Two girls had a picture of Ichigo in their bedroom, though it didn't appear to be a picture that Ichigo had given, it was more like a picture taken when he hadn't been paying attention, in both cases it seemed like that. One girl had fallen asleep while working on her homework and her notebook had Ichigo's name written on the inside of it.

_I'm glad he's happy with me, and I'm pretty sure he has no idea these girls all have a crush on him, so I guess I don't need to worry about it. He is with me, after all._

Rukia doesn't rush home the way she thought she would, since she's so lost in her thoughts. Inoue's words had been kind of revealing. Even Rukia wouldn't consider telling Ichigo she'd let him do anything with her, because there are definitely some things she's not interested in doing sexually. It bugs her that Inoue would do anything for Ichigo's happiness, and she doesn't like that another girl can say something that she just can't.

Ichigo ends up spotting Rukia as he's heading home, and he swoops out of the sky to grab her up in his arms to get her back into bed much more quickly.

Rukia's eyes widened when Ichigo plucked her off of the ground and into the sky in his arms. She looks at his eyes, and he gives her a sexy and excited grin as he meets her eyes.

"I love you." Rukia whispers so softly that Ichigo can't hear her, but he had been looking at her face and he knew what she was telling him.

"I love you too," He murmurs into her ear before he flies back into his bedroom with her. He sets her down when they enter his room, and he gets back into his body and then looks at her hungrily.

Rukia wants to go for a round two as well, but first there is something she has to know.

"Ichigo?" Rukia whispers softly, and he looks right back at her, with his face all gentle and relaxed.

"What?" He asks her. He knows something is in the air, but he has no idea what it could be.

"Sit down with me, and tell me your greatest sexual fantasy, please." Rukia tells him as she gets back into her gigai and walks over to his bed to sit down. Ichigo blushes and scratches his head, but he listens and slowly walks over to her. He sits down, and he looks away a bit.

"You first." Ichigo tells her quietly. Rukia sighs.

"I asked you first." Rukia tells him sternly. Ichigo blushes again.

"I know. It's kind of unfair though. Before we made love, I didn't think a whole lot about sex, and after we made love, I more or less just thought about those memories." Ichigo says, still not meeting her eyes.

"Baloney. I'm not stupid, I know you have something you'd like to do, and I want t know what it is." Rukia tells him worriedly. Ichigo sighs loudly.

"I figured you would say that." He mutters, since he's worried that telling her his fantasy will result in her smacking him in a painful way.

"Just spit it out." Rukia tells him with a frustrated sigh.

"Fine. My fantasy is for us to do it in public, without getting caught." Ichigo says, his face getting redder. Rukia's mouth falls open. She hadn't expected his response to be that.

"That's it?" Rukia squeaks with relief. Ichigo gives her a look that lets her know he thinks that's a bizarre question.

"I thought you'd hit me when you heard me say that." He says, pleasantly surprised that she doesn't seem to despise his fantasy.

"I'd hit you if you wanted to get caught, fool." Rukia says, giving him a little grin. Ichigo smiles at her. Normally the word fool would be taken insultingly, but from her to him, it's far more like an endearment.

"What did you think I'd say?" Ichigo asks her with confusion. Rukia blushes. She had been terrified he'd say his biggest fantasy was anal, since that is not something she'll ever be down for.

"Um…" Rukia says with a bit of a blush. Ichigo studies her face, and he can tell she had come up with some sort of really disgusting thought, since she doesn't even want to voice it out loud.

"What on earth do you think of me?" Ichigo asks her with wide eyes as she looks at him guiltily.

"I was worried you'd say something too perverted." Rukia finally answers shyly. Ichigo gives her a contemplative look. He's not even sure he wants to know what thoughts were running through her mind. She looks away.

"Does that mean you're considering making my fantasy a reality?" Ichigo asks curiously. Rukia's eyes widen before she looks back at him to meet his gaze.

"Yeah. Lets do it." Rukia tells him with a smile appearing on her face after she finished.

"Where will we go?" Ichigo asks as his heart starts thumping faster.

"Do you have a specific place in mind?" Rukia asks him quietly. Ichigo blushes.

"The faculty lounge at school." Ichigo says, as his face turns redder. Rukia's eyes bulge.

"Seriously?" She asks with shock still showing on her face. Ichigo ducks his head a little.

"Yeah." He says with embarrassment.

"Then lets go." Rukia tells him as she walks over to the window. She hold out her hand and Ichigo walks over to her and places his hand in her own. They hop out of the window together and head to school.

Rukia watches with wide eyes as Ichigo breaks into the school, by locating an unlocked window. They hurry through the unknown classroom that they broke into and they head out into the dark hallway. They rush to the faculty lounge and walk inside. Ichigo looks around at all of the desks for the teachers to grade schoolwork at.

"Are you looking for a particular spot?" Rukia whispers as she glances around the room. She can feel her whole body tingling with anticipation at what they're about to do.

"Just a cleaner desk so that we can lean up against it," Ichigo whispers back as they walk further into the room. He smiles when he sees a desk that is very organized with hardly any work on top of it. He smiles and points at it to Rukia.

"Okay." She says to him as they walk over to the desk.

"I'm already really excited." Ichigo admits to her before he takes her lips in a long lingering kiss.

"Me too," Rukia whispers breathlessly, once Ichigo pulls away.

He leans back in and kisses her again as he puts his hands into her silky hair and tugs on it a bit. He nibbles on her lips and dips his tongue into her mouth deeply, as though he wants to taste all of her.

Rukia puts her hands on the back of his neck and she moves her fingers around just a tiny bit, as she feels herself getting drawn further into the passion of the moment.

He drags his hands down from her hair and he starts to rub her back as he kisses her. Rukia can feel her entire body reacting to his heated kisses and she moves her hands from his neck, down to his sexy ass, and she begins to rub his butt cheeks.

Ichigo feels himself getting more turned on as she rubs his butt and he returns the favor as he lets his hands drop to her butt and he begins squeezing her butt cheeks, pulling her closer to him in the middle. He finally stops kissing her lips in order to start undressing her.

When he pulls her dress up over her head, He drops to his knees to start pressing tantalizing kisses all around her flat and sexy stomach.

Rukia wonders how something as simple as having her belly kissed can feel so damned exciting. She runs her fingers through his spiky hair and she gasps when he tugs her pink underwear down and proceeds to start licking her in between her legs.

Rukia leans back up against the desk and lets out a long yet unstable breath of air when he first starts out, she doesn't take her hands off of his head as she yanks on his hair and runs her hands all around his hair as he makes her feel as though she's flying when she's standing on the ground. She can feel herself losing her composure as his tongue seems to move at a very fast rate in tiny little circles, all around. She can feel herself shaking from the intensity of the pleasure that he's bringing her, and when he stands back up, he gives her a glazed over look of passion.

"You're so sexy," he whispers softly to her as he places his hands on her breasts. Rukia closes her eyes and lets out a tiny sigh as she attempts to regain a little bit of her composure. It's practically impossible to do so though when he keeps making her feel so wondrous.

"You're the only one I want." Rukia tells him, lovingly. Ichigo smiles at her as he takes her by the waist and turns her around.

"You know I feel the same way about you," Ichigo tells her before he enters her where she's oozing wetness, in want of his touch.

Rukia's hands brace down on the desk as he starts to move in and out of her. When they're standing like this, his ability to move his body around swiftly inside of her is much greater than when they're laying down.

Ichigo puts one hand in her hair, and the other on her stomach as he makes love to her and he loves it when she makes the erotic little moans that he now anticipates every time they're intimate. It's a trademark of hers, that sweet little moan that sounds so satisfied and so hot at the same time.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says his name fiercely and he steps up his pace.

"You feel so good, Rukia," Ichigo mutters as he closes his eyes and concentrates solely on the feeling of making love to her.

Ichigo feels like it's too good to simply be sex, he feels fully like he's become a part of her when he enters her like this. It makes him feel so close to her, and he enjoys that feeling just as much as he enjoys the action of making love in itself.

He yanks out of her and spins her around so quickly, she hardly has time to process what just happened, and he stares into her eyes as he pushes her to be sitting against the edge of the desk and he stands in between her legs and begins to make love to her from the front. Rukia can't look away from his totally intense eyes as he's moving in and out of her in such a sensuous way. His hands come up to rest on her breasts for a moment before he slides them down to her waist and then her thighs.

He doesn't think a more beautiful woman in the world can even exist. He finally feels his body start to react like his climax is about to occur, and he leans down to give her a fiery hot kiss before he spills into her for the second time that night.

They both breathe hard, and neither one pull away from the other.

"That was amazing," Rukia tells him softly as she places a trail of kisses along his cheek.

"It was only amazing because it was you and me." Ichigo tells her quietly. Rukia gives him a big and genuine smile.

"I'm glad you think so." She tells him happily.

"I do. Rukia, you can do anything you want to me. I won't say no. As long as we're together, I'll be happy." Ichigo tells her, making her eyes widen. He has no idea what it means to her that he would say those words to her, since she'd heard Inoue saying the identical words about him as she slept.

"The only thing I want to do to you, is keep you forever." Rukia tells him as she gives him another kiss.

"I'm not sure that's long enough," Ichigo tells her before he kisses her again.

"We'll see if you say that in two hundred years," Rukia tells him with a grin. Ichigo gives her a serious look.

"I'll say it in two thousand years." He informs her seriously.

"Promise?" Rukia asks him with a smile. Ichigo gives her a huge smile back.

"Promise." He tells her lovingly, and Rukia smiles.

_I'll have to remember to remind him of this every so often._


	56. As Requested: Jealousy

**_A/N-I had a request to do a story on Ichigo's jealousy for Rukia while she's totally oblivious at first…and so here it is. All requested stories that I do are dedicated to those who request them. Enjoy!_**

_Jealousy_

Ichigo should have realized that going to the water park with Rukia would be a bad idea. If he had simply just thought it through, he's sure he would have told her no.

When Inoue had offered to get everyone tickets so that they could go, Rukia had looked so confused at her offer.

_"What is a water park?"_ Rukia had asked with big curious eyes. Inoue had smiled and told Rukia she would absolutely have to come and to make sure she brought Kurosaki-kun with her.

Rukia had immediately located Ichigo to inquire about the specifics of a water park, and he had reluctantly told her about them. When her eyes had gotten big, round, and excited, he'd been incapable of telling her no when she asked him to take her.

Ichigo had never seen Rukia in a bathing suit before. Not until today. Apparently she had gone shopping with Rangiku-san for the occasion, and Ichigo had become speechless when he'd seen her in the very skimpy and sexy little bikini. It was had wide diagonal stripes of silver and purple as its design, and it only barely could be considered decent.

The other guys had noticed too. Ichigo suddenly became very angry and sullen when he realized just how affected all of the guys were whenever they looked in Rukia's direction. He hadn't even been able to notice Tatsuki, Inoue, or the other girls bathing suits, because he could barely tear his eyes away from Rukia, unless it was to glare at one of his male friends for looking at her as similarly as he had been staring at her.

Rukia of course is totally oblivious and ignorant of the sensation she is creating with her bikini from all of the guys. Rukia had blushed when she'd seen how well Inoue filled out her own bikini. Tatsuki's dark green bikini is far more sports like, and ideal for being active in the water.

"I hope you don't lose your tops as we go down that slide," Tatsuki says to both Rukia and Inoue as she points at it.

Rukia starts worrying that maybe the bathing suit she bought wasn't ideal for the type of active day that they have planned, and she wonders if she shouldn't have just forced Ichigo to come help her shop for one, but he had adamantly told her to find a girl to help her with that task as he'd blushed and refused to meet her eyes.

"Are you serious? How would I lose it?" Rukia asks nervously as she stares at Tatsuki. She still hasn't noticed Ichigo's eyes sliding appreciatively up and down her body as she stands there in her skimpy bathing suit.

Inoue has noticed though. She had thought that if she got Kurosaki-kun to the water park, he would finally start noticing her more than Kuchiki-san, but the plan seems to have had the opposite effect. He can only remove his eyes from her long enough to glare at one of the guys before he looks back at her.

"Here, let me help you double knot your ties to help you. Make sure you hold onto your tops as you go down the slide," Tatsuki says as Rukia turns and allows her to double knot the ties of the bikini.

The guys are all drooling.

"I think it's a great bathing suit, Kuchiki-san!" Keigo says with a look of love directed at her.

"I agree. I had no idea you had such great taste." Mizuiro says with widened eyes.

"Uh…wow." Ishida says as his eyes slide between Inoue and the Shinigami that he should hate. He had no idea she had such a great body, even though he's seen her legs enough that he should have known.

Sado doesn't say anything, and he tries hard not to stare at the object of his best friend's desire, but it's awfully hard to accomplish that goal today. He had no idea Kuchiki-san was so darn cute.

"Thanks," Rukia says to the guys in a voice that doesn't sound very confident. "I'm not so sure I should have shopped with Rangiku-san since she's never been to a water park before," Rukia says softly in Inoue's direction.

Ishida guffaws when he hears that, and Sado's mouth drops open too.

"You shopped with Rangiku-san?" Sado asks in a shocked whisper. Ichigo looks like he just got smacked with a brick.

"Ichigo wouldn't help me find a bathing suit that would have been more appropriate for what we're doing today!" Rukia wails loudly, and Ichigo blushes when his friends all give him a look that tells him they think he's an idiot.

"Kuchiki-san, it will be okay, don't get so upset!" Tatsuki says, feeling bad for getting her all worked up.

Rukia finally turns to look at Ichigo who has to drag his eyes forcibly from her body to her face.

"If I lose my top, you had better find it so that nobody sees me!" Rukia tells him in a panicked voice. Everyone starts laughing as Ichigo blushes again.

"You won't lose your top." Ichigo says without much conviction.

"We'll all make sure nobody sees anything if that happens," Tatsuki assures Rukia, who finally nods and looks around.

"What do we do first here?" Rukia asks as she looks around.

"The slide." Keigo says immediately, causing all of the other guys to blush.

"You're such a dick." Tatsuki says as she rolls her eyes.

"We might as well get it over with and test the sturdiness of their bathing suits now. We're not going to avoid the slide all day." Keigo argues as he crosses his arms. Ichigo hits him in the back of the head.

"We don't have to go on the slides first thing!" Ichigo tells him angrily.

"Lets do those!" Inoue says pointing towards the water where there are large padded barrel type things in the water that you try to run on to avoid falling in the water.

The guys eyes all turn hungry at the idea of the girls running in place in their bathing suits, and everyone except for Ichigo starts nodding excitedly. Ichigo crosses his arms and his stomach feels like it's going to explode.

It's way too much pressure for him to see Rukia so barely covered, looking amazingly gorgeous and feminine. She looks just like a teenage girl, and not a decades old Shinigami that he came across by chance.

_She's the girl of my dreams._

He's never admitted to Rukia that she is his ideal girl. She makes him feel so strong and so understood. He's had a hardcore crush on her for ages which he has often thought he did a great job in masking, but now…she's in a bikini.

_She looks good enough to eat. I just want to touch her. I want her so bad._

He suddenly notices that several of his friends thoughts seem to be heading in the same direction as his own as he glances at them, and he's suddenly angry again.

_Damn her for being so sexy! She's going to be the death of me. She'll give me a heart attack before I can even turn thirty._

Ichigo gives several of his friends pointed stares at the looks they're giving to his…

_My what? My Rukia? She's never given herself to me, though she's protected my life with her own on more than one occasion. Doesn't she feel the same way about me?_

He can't look at Rukia in the same old way, it's like he's been given a new picture… as he sees her standing there looking so amazingly sexy and beautiful. She's making his heart race ten times faster then it usually does, even in the heat of battle.

She's the same girl that he's known for a long time now, but when she stands there looking so freaking hot, it's like she's a dream come to life.

_My heart and soul's greatest desire._

Ichigo follows sullenly as the group heads towards the barrels that Inoue stupidly suggested they do first. Even Keigo had no objections to that suggestion.

Tatsuki is very glad for her sports bra style bikini as they make their way to a barrel that has just become free for use.

Nobody sees Kon peeking from behind a trashcan, since nobody had noticed him stow away in Rukia's swim bag.

"Oh…nee-san. Oh….Inoue-san. My goddesses of beauty and grace! How I long to touch your great mountains of love!" Kon says dreamily before a small child spots him and sends him running away for his life.

"Look at those girls with those tiny bikinis on!" Keigo says excitedly to Mizuiro. He can hardly believe everybody is finally out together having fun after he's spent close to a year inviting everyone out only to be told no.

"I know," Mizuiro says in appreciation.

"Shut up, both of you." Ichigo growls quietly enough for only them to hear.

"Ichigo, did you have any idea that Kuchiki-san would look so fabulous in a bikini?" Mizuiro asks him curiously, causing Ichigo's face to go bright red.

_Of course not! If I'd known do you think I would have even let her come here with you lecherous bastards?_

"Shut up!" Ichigo says again as he looks away.

"I have a feeling this day won't be as relaxing for him as it will be for the rest of us," Ishida whispers quietly to Sado, who nods his agreement.

_Jealousy and desire have reared their ugly heads._

Rukia quickly runs onto the moving barrel first and starts to run in place without falling into the water. Tatsuki follows her on and also keeps up with Rukia's pace, staying in place. Inoue follows on next and is only able to run for a few seconds before she falls in. Sado gets on next to Tatsuki and quickly starts running too fast for Tatsuki to keep up and she falls into the water.

Ichigo gets on next to Sado and doesn't much like him being next to Rukia so he starts to speed up the pace of the barrel.

"Ichigo! You're going way too fast!" Rukia's voice squeals before she falls into the water laughing. Sado is able to keep up with Ichigo, and he grins as Ishida hops on and immediately falls off due to the pace.

"Slow it down so that the rest of us can enjoy it!" Keigo whines as he watches the barrel spin at an amazing rate.

Rukia and Tatsuki have started a splash war in the water, and Ishida quickly swims to get out of the water and out of the way of the girls and their water war. Inoue is waiting to get on the barrel again, and hopes to get next to Ichigo. Mizuiro offers to let her back on since she fell so quickly, and the moment she's next to Ichigo, he purposely falls off to join Tatsuki and Rukia's splash fight.

Inoue looks a bit down as Ichigo has barely looked her way since she got undressed all the way down to her bikini.

Things quickly get out of hand in the splash war as Tatsuki and Rukia laugh and gang up together on Ichigo, splashing water at him so much that he barely has the chance to breathe. He covers his mouth so that he can take in a breath of fresh air and he dives underwater towards where he saw Rukia standing.

"Ahhh! Ichigo!" Rukia's voice screams out as he grabs her underwater and resurfaces before he tosses her a few meters away, with Rukia screaming the whole way. He tries not to let his mind stay on how good it felt to have her in his arms, or how nice it felt to feel her wet skin touching his own.

Rukia lands and immediately goes underwater. She doesn't immediately resurface, and Ichigo starts to get nervous as he scans the water, trying to locate her.

"Rukia!" Ichigo calls out nervously. He lets out a shocked shout of surprise when something underwater feels like it just bit his butt.

Rukia resurfaces next to Tatsuki, laughing as they resume splashing him, and Ichigo is left red faced to take on their splashes. Nobody saw what she did, and Ichigo isn't sure what to make of it.

_Did she really bite my ass?_

Rukia and Tatsuki get out to try the barrel again and Ichigo slowly follows them. The moment Rukia's out of the water, all of his buddies are suddenly staring at her again. Ichigo is left to helplessly wonder.

_How is it possible for her to look even more sexy? _

"What's wrong with you?" Rukia leans over and whispers as she sees a ferocious look cross his face. Ichigo scowls at her.

"Nothing." He mutters before he cuts ahead of her to get on the barrel.

"Hey!" Rukia says in an offended manner_._

_Why's he picking on me so much today? He only seemed happy when we were playing in the water._

Ichigo smirks at her as he gets onto the barrel.

The day continues on with Ichigo switching from playful to angry, and she's left confused until she catches Ichigo punishing one of his friends for looking at her.

Rukia drags him aside to talk alone. Ichigo crosses his arms and refuses to meet her gaze while she stares at him curiously.

"What on earth has been wrong with you all day? I thought we were having a good time!" Rukia tells him with a sigh of exasperation. Ichigo still won't meet her eyes.

"Nothing is wrong with me." Ichigo bites out as he looks towards the sky.

"Look at me." Rukia commands him, and Ichigo reluctantly meets her eyes.

"I get the feeling that your bad mood has something to do with me, and I want to know why you're acting like this." Rukia says as she searches his eyes and doesn't miss how he blushes furiously at her question.

"It's nothing…he was just looking at you in a way that pissed me off." Ichigo says gruffly.

"Ichigo…are you…jealous?!" Rukia asks him in total disbelief. She never imagined he would ever get like this over her. He's seen the guys admire her before and he had never said all that much, even if he did scowl every time it happened.

Ichigo's response is to blush harder and to look away.

"Of course not," he answers, and she can immediately tell he's lying to her.

"You are! You're actually jealous! I never thought I'd see the day where the insanely strong and confident Kurosaki Ichigo actually started acting jealous!" Rukia says with her eyes wide, and her mouth just hangs open a bit as she stares at him.

Ichigo can feel his heart sinking.

_Oh no…oh god…she's figured it out. Fuck._

"I didn't say that!" Ichigo says desperately, but Rukia's face changes from surprise to a big fat satisfied smile.

"It's about time you started noticing I'm actually a woman." She tells him in a pleased voice.

"I've always noticed that," Ichigo snaps back as he finally meets her gaze. "It's not like I could ever forget something like that, you don't look like a man at all!" Ichigo informs her in a low voice.

"Really?" Rukia squeaks in an awestruck voice. "You've noticed me…as a woman before?" She asks as she holds her breath. Ichigo just keeps blushing and refuses to meet her eyes.

"Since the first time I saw you I noticed that." Ichigo informs her in a completely embarrassed voice.

"You called me a child." Rukia points out quickly.

"Only because you're short. I never actually thought of you as a child." He admits in a small voice.

Rukia walks away from him, and Ichigo doesn't notice right away, since he was too busy trying not to meet her gaze. He immediately chases after her.

"Hey! Rukia!" Ichigo calls out loudly, but she keeps going until he catches up to her and grabs her arm.

"What?" Rukia asks him with a grin on her face. She feels so enlightened all of a sudden.

"What about you? Have you…" Ichigo trails off. He can't say it, because it's far too embarrassing. He can't just come out and ask her if she's ever thought of him as a man.

Rukia walks away again, and he can hear her singing voice as she moves away.

"Ichigo was jealous! J-E-A-L-O-U-S!" Rukia sings it as though she's very amused and Ichigo turns bright red as he chases after her. Their friends are by the slide that had worried her so much earlier. Rukia's not so worried now. She knows Ichigo will do everything in his power to keep her from being seen if she loses her top.

"Rukia!" Ichigo calls out desperately. "Shut up!" He says as he stays behind her sulking.

"I think I did the right thing in shopping with Rangiku-san." Rukia says under her breath with a huge smile. Ichigo keeps sulking and makes Rukia go down the slide with him on the fabric pad provided at the top.

Rukia can feel her heart racing as she sits in between Ichigo's legs with his legs hooked over hers and his hands around her waist. She leans back into him as they go down the slide, and it is so fun.

Inoue watches in envy at the way the two sit so close and have so much fun when they're together.

When Rukia gets to the bottom with her top intact, she immediately demands that they go back on again. Ichigo shakes his head with a smile and he obliges her.

Eleven times. That's how many times she successfully goes down the slide before she loses her top.

All hell breaks loose when Rukia loses her top, instead of going to find it for her in the water, Ichigo grabs her up in a bear hug and drags her off to a corner of the pool area of where the slides end so that nobody can get any kind of view of her.

"Tatsuki! Find Rukia's top!" Ichigo calls out as he holds her tight against him. Ichigo feels a bit of horror in his stomach when his body reacts to being against her bare chest with his own.

Rukia is mortified but she doesn't dare tear away from him. She had thought her suit was okay after she'd gone down the slide with no problems the first three times. She's never been this exposed and close to a man before, and it's making her heart race. She puts her head up against Ichigo's chest as she waits for her top to be recovered, and she's stunned to hear his heart beating as rapidly at her own.

"Ichigo?" Rukia says as she looks up at him, blushing. Ichigo looks back at her with an identical blush.

"What?" He asks her nervously.

"Thanks for looking out for me," Rukia tells him softly.

Ichigo just reacts. He doesn't think about it as he lowers his head to kiss her. He's been aching to do it for so long and being against her so close has shattered all of his resistance to the feelings he has for her.

They're still kissing passionately when Tatsuki pops up beside them with a grin, holding Rukia's top.

"Hey, can you two stop kissing long enough to let Kuchiki-san get her suit back on?" She asks loudly, causing the couple to break away from their kissing.

"Thanks," Rukia tells Tatsuki as she takes the top. Ichigo forces his eyes to stay looking around for possible peepers as Rukia hurriedly gets her bikini back on.

Rukia and Ichigo immediately leave the water park to their friends, and go home to experiment more with their newfound mutual feelings for one another.

They walk home holding hands.


	57. As Requested: Revelation Of Love

_**A/N- Even though I think Ichigo probably knows the history behind Kaien and Rukia, since he stopped acting so curious about it after Soul Society, for the purposes of this story, he doesn't have any clue. This was a request and is dedicated to the reviewer that requested it.**_

_Revelation Of Love_

Ichigo has been spending the past few nights pondering exactly what his Shinigami powers actually mean to him. They're very important. So much so, that he doesn't think that he could ever give them to another person upon meeting them.

_So why? Why did Rukia give her powers to me after barely even meeting me? After I'd been rude to her, and gotten in her way, why did she give me the most precious gift I've ever been given outside of my life? Maybe because she gave me my life…again._

He has always been curious to know just why Rukia went so far just for him. He's certain she wouldn't have given her powers to anybody else, at least it's what he feels.

_So, why me?_

Ichigo remembers how Rukia pounded it into his head that killing hollows was his duty since he had her powers. She had taken him to save that child, and she had yelled big words at him like commitment, and what it means to be a Shinigami.

He also remembers how after she realized he could see her, she'd easily overcome his attack when he'd tried to overpower her a second time. He hadn't exactly been pleased that it had been so easy for her either.

His mind runs to the night he first found out that he resembled someone from Rukia's past thanks to Byakuya's words to his sister that night as she cried, thinking her brother's attack had been deadly.

Rukia had wanted to run to him, and be with him as he laid there in pain. Then he heard Byakuya say he looked like someone and it kind of pissed him off that he was finding out something as important as that in that kind of way.

_Who do I look like to you Rukia? Who on earth do I resemble that you would just give your powers to me so easily? You barely knew me._

He's always wondered about it in the back of his mind, and he's always been afraid to ask her about it. She didn't continuously press him about his mother, and Ichigo has the distinct feeling that Rukia's past with the man he resembles is as private as he used to feel about his mother's death.

He hates it when he can't get these insecure thoughts out of his mind. He thinks Rukia is truly a special girl, and he finds himself wondering why she stays so close to him, and why he only feels content when she's nearby.

_Does she want to be close because she cares about me, or is it the possible connection to this man from her past that keeps her near me?_

Ichigo decides he needs to go for a walk to clear his mind. Whenever he starts letting himself think too much about these things, it just takes a bit of time to push the thoughts out of his mind to try and wait patiently for the day Rukia finally decides to share the truth with him for herself.

It has always been like this, ever since he returned from Soul Society. He can never truly figure out what's going on in Rukia's brain, but then she always surprises him by saying exactly what he needs to hear.

_Even if you can't rely on anyone else, just pull yourself together and roar! The you that still lives on in my heart Ichigo, would do exactly that!_

He couldn't help but smile. The Rukia he keeps in his heart is the one who was yelling at him so ferociously that day, doing what she does best. Effectively wiping out the rain, and bringing sunshine into his world.

_Why do I always think these things and then never say any of them?_

Ichigo finally tears his mind away from Rukia with a bit of effort. Sometimes it seems like he has a one track brain, the way he so easily drifts off into thinking about her. He walks a bit faster as he tries to make his mind completely blank. After all, the only thing really worth thinking about is Rukia.

Ichigo sighs as he walks around. He focuses on how nice the weather is for a few minutes as he peers up at the sky, until he hears a loud rumbling sound. He looks around in confusion and his eyes pop out of his head at what he sees.

_Ganju?!_

"Yo! Ichigo!" It's Ganju alright. Ichigo rubs his eyes as his old friend comes plowing towards him on a huge boar.

"Ganju? What in the hell are you doing here?" Ichigo asks in shock.

"Brother!" Ganju cries out in happiness as he leaps off of Bonnie chan and he flies at Ichigo. Ichigo screams.

"Ah! What are you doing! Get off of me!" Ichigo is flailing around while Ganju is hugging him closely.

"Don't be like that Ichigo! We're brothers!" Ganju says to him excitedly, causing Ichigo to give him a dubious glare.

"What in the hell are you talking about? Did you get your hands on some crack or something? You're not making any sense." Ichigo tells Ganju as he bops him on the head. Ganju falls to one knee and smiles up at Ichigo.

"I just found out for a fact that you are the reincarnation of my brother Shiba Kaien." Ganju tells Ichigo solemnly.

"Eh?" Ichigo says in shock and confusion.

"You are the reincarnation of my brother for sure. Your reiatsu was actually traceable. My sister took a great interest in you after she met you and she collected some of your reiatsu to be compared to my brother's old reiatsu and what was on file for him. There is no doubt that you are the reincarnation of Shiba Kaien, my older brother who died at the hands of…a Shinigami." Ganju says, suddenly uncomfortable. It's no secret that Ichigo is very close to the woman who was responsible for his brother's death.

_How will he take it when he finds out Kuchiki Rukia was the one who actually ended his life?_

Ichigo studies his friend's expression and his sudden shift from excitement to nervousness.

"Is something wrong?" Ichigo asks him with a bit of concern at how unsettled Ganju suddenly looks.

"I really just wanted to let you know that I consider you a brother. If you have any other questions, you can ask Kuchiki Rukia. She should be able to answer any other questions that you might have." Ganju says before he jumps back onto Bonnie-chan and rides away at top speed.

Ichigo stares after him in confusion.

Ichigo walks around a bit and finds he's amazed that he's the reincarnation of somebody when he can't sense their presence within his soul at all.

_What kind of man was Shiba Kaien, and why was he killed by Shinigami?_

Ichigo searches his heart and soul to see if the answers will just come to him, but no matter how hard he tries, he can't tap into Shiba Kaien and his memories. He can't feel any lingering spirit of the man at all within himself.

He walks around for another hour simply wondering about it until his curiosity finally gets the better of him and he heads home to talk to Rukia.

When Ichigo hops into his window, he finds Rukia all stretched out on his bed, with her eyes closed and a big smile on her face. He stands on the windowsill just staring at her beautiful face, when she opens her eyes and they widen in surprise of finding him there.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says with a bit of embarrassment. She hopes he didn't just hear what she had been saying out loud a moment ago.

_Kurosaki Rukia._

"Rukia. I have something important to ask you," Ichigo says in a deadly serious voice, and Rukia immediately sits up and looks at him nervously.

_Oh shit, he did hear me! What am I going to say to him now?_

"It's not what you think!" Rukia says quickly as her cheeks turn red. Ichigo's eyes get a very confused look in them as he stares curiously at her.

"What are you talking about?" Ichigo asks her, the confusion in his voice very apparent.

"Uh…nothing. What did you want to talk about?" Rukia asks him as she sweats at the close call that just was.

"I just ran into Ganju of all people. He said something really interesting to me, and I want to know what you think of it all, and I have questions for you too." Ichigo explains to her as he sits down on the bed. Rukia positions herself to be sitting next to him before she asks him the question.

"What did Ganju say to you?" Rukia asks him as she looks up into his eyes curiously.

"He said it's been proven for sure that I am the reincarnation of Shiba Kaien, his brother that was killed by Shinigami." Ichigo tells her softly, and he watches as Rukia's eyes grow wide and tears well up in her eyes.

"He said that?" Rukia asks softly as she searches his eyes carefully for any sign of a joke.

"Yeah, and that's all he would say. He told me if I had any other questions, that I should ask you, and so here I am…asking you." Ichigo tells her softly as he stares into her eyes for any hint of an answer.

"Shiba Kaien was the former Lieutenant of the Thirteenth Division." Rukia answers him very softly as a couple of tears spill down her face.

"So you knew him?" Ichigo asks her softly.

Rukia stands and goes over to her bag. She opens up a secret pocket in the side of her bag and digs out a picture. She holds it tight in her hands before she walks back over to Ichigo to hand him a picture that she's always kept of Shiba Kaien, standing with his wife Miyako.

When Ichigo accepts the picture and looks at it, he can see his hands start to shake as he looks at a man that could be his twin brother wearing colored contacts and dyed hair. He doesn't really look at the woman next to him except to make sure it isn't Rukia, and his gaze settles on the man who he obviously shares a lot of physical characteristics with.

"He taught me how to fight, he gave me a place in Soul Society, and…I had to kill him." Rukia tells Ichigo softly, causing Ichigo to drop the picture and stare up at her in shock.

"You…killed me…him?" Ichigo asks her in horror, causing Rukia's tears to fall at an even greater rate.

"It was a hollow that Aizen had designed. It had the ability to steal a Shinigami's zanpakutou if you touched its feelers, and once it did that, it could fuse with a Shinigami body. Kaien fought the hollow, and it ended with the hollow fusing to his body, coming after Captain Ukitake and me. When he flew at me, I was holding my sword up defensively and he landed right on my sword. If I hadn't held my sword that way, he would have killed me, and so I killed him. To save myself." Rukia admits pitifully as she turns away from Ichigo.

"So this is the man your brother was talking about on that day so long ago?" Ichigo asks her in a tight voice as he processes the information that he was just given.

_I love her…and she killed Shiba Kaien. I am the reincarnation of Shiba Kaien and I love her. Why do I feel so betrayed?_

"He…thanked me. As he died in my arms…he thanked me and left his heart with me." Rukia admits in a small voice to the man who is the reincarnation of the man who gave her his heart.

"So when you started to get to know me, and live in my home with me, were you interested in who Kurosaki Ichigo was, or were you just imagining you were getting to spend some stolen moments with Shiba Kaien?" Ichigo asks her in a voice that sounds almost hurt. Rukia gasps.

"I only just now found out that you're his reincarnation!" Rukia defends herself. Ichigo bends down to pick up the picture and show it to her as he glares at her fully.

"Don't give me that shit Rukia. I can see, you know. My eyes work. I could look exactly like this guy with some colored contacts and some hair dye." Ichigo says in a furious voice to her. "Why in the hell didn't you ever tell me this before? Did you think it didn't concern me?" Ichigo asks her angrily.

"You may resemble him, and you may even have a similar personality to him, but I've never seen you as anybody other than Kurosaki Ichigo!" Rukia tells him in a frantic voice.

"Liar. Even I can't see myself as just Kurosaki Ichigo after seeing that picture." Ichigo says as he walks over to his desk and picks up a picture of he and Rukia standing together and walks over to her to present the pictures side by side.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says with her eyes wide in frustration.

"Tell me Rukia, why you gave me your powers that night. It's because I looked like him, isn't it?" Ichigo asks her straight out.

"It's true that you startled me, looking so much like my former Lieutenant, a man who I respected a great deal. It's also true that I couldn't allow you to die right in front of my eyes just like I had to watch him die. Then I got to know you for who you are and I became very close to you. For who you are, not for who Shiba Kaien was." Rukia tells him tensely.

"Did you love him?" Ichigo asks her softly. Rukia looks away.

"He was a married man, from the moment I met him until the day that he died." Rukia whispers softly.

"But you said that he gave you his heart. Why did he give it to you and not to his wife?" Ichigo asks her with narrowed eyes. He smells deceit in this story and he wants to get to the bottom of it.

"He died fighting the hollow…that killed his wife." Rukia says in an aching whisper. "I loved Miyako-dono a great deal. I looked up to her." Rukia tells him softly.

"Did you love him?" Ichigo asks her a second time. Rukia refuses to say a word but she jerks her head yes without meeting his eyes, and Ichigo can feel his heart breaking.

"It's-" Rukia starts to say but she's interrupted by Ichigo.

"Have you projected your love for him onto me?" Ichigo asks her next, dreading her answer. What if she tells him she doesn't love him at all, that he could never compare to her precious Kaien?

"I didn't love him in that way, you're misunderstanding. I loved him as a comrade." Rukia says in a soft voice.

"So you weren't attracted to him?" Ichigo asks her as he studies her face. He can see her blush.

"That's not fair…he was an attractive man." Rukia says as she keeps blushing.

_She was attracted to him. I guess that means she's attracted to me then too. Which version does she actually prefer though?_

"I don't know what to think." Ichigo tells her as he stares at her standing there fidgeting nervously.

"You and Kaien-dono are two different people. Even though your resemblance to him drew me to you instantly, it's _you_ who I became close to. If you had not been such a wonderful man there's no way I would have stuck by you like I have!" Rukia tells him as she sees him looking uncertain and sad.

"When you're with me, do you see me or do you see him?" Ichigo asks her desperately. Rukia's eyes widen at that question and she stares at him, with his bright orange hair and intense brown eyes.

"I only see you, Kurosaki Ichigo, the man I've fallen in love with." Rukia tells him as she stares deep into his eyes.

Ichigo's eyes slowly raise to meet hers and he looks at her hopefully.

"You're in love with me?" Ichigo asks her as his eyes soften instantly.

"I love you more than anyone." Rukia replies in an aching voice.

She doesn't even have time to interpret his reaction because he's crushing his lips passionately against her own. Rukia holds on for dear life and kisses him back to let him know her words are all true.

"I love you too…I was so worried…Rukia." Ichigo says before he presses his lips against hers to feel the closeness again.

Rukia feels him rubbing her back gently as he makes her feel so totally loved as he kisses her so fiercely, as though he's afraid the moment isn't actually real. Rukia gives him back everything she has as she returns his kiss. She lets her fingers thread through his bright orange hair as she loses herself in the depths of Ichigo's love.

"I'll be in love with you forever…" Rukia mutters as he drags her back into the bed, where she'd been when he first popped in the window.

"Show me…" Ichigo whispers, and Rukia pulls him in for a searing kiss that makes his heart beat triple time as she lets her fingers trail softly down his chest.

"Ichigo…" Rukia mutters in between kisses.

"I'll spend every day loving you from now on," Ichigo tells her before he pulls her back closer to him and kisses her passionately.

_It doesn't matter that I'm his reincarnation, I have Rukia and that's all I truly need to be happy._


	58. As Requested: Inheritance 2

_**A/N-I had a request to do a sequel to inheritance, and since it's one of my favorites too, I happily agreed. Here it is and I hope you all enjoy it!**_

_**This was requested via PM, you know who you are, it's dedicated to you!**_

_Inheritance 2_

Everyone's eyes are drawn to Soukyoku Hill when a bright light starts beating down, indicating that the path leading to the royal dimension is opening.

Ichigo and Rukia are together as they emerge in sight from the pathway where the blinding light was shining. When they land on Soukyoku Hill, Ichigo smiles and grabs his wife in his arms as he uses shunpo to take her to the Kuchiki mansion first thing. She was upset that she didn't have some of her most important belongings with her in the royal dimension.

Ichigo holds back his smirks at the way everyone they pass by at a normal rate of speed falls to the floor on their faces since they are royalty now.

Ichigo lets Rukia walk ahead of him since he doesn't exactly know the layout of the Kuchiki mansion, and he smiles at the way the Kuchiki clan members also fall to the ground at the first sight of Rukia. Somehow their heads manage to dip even lower as he enters the room.

Ichigo knows that his spiritual power has grown exponentially. He can feel the power constantly bubbling over the surface. The same is true for his wife. Her power has grown as much as his has, even though she's still more talented than him at kidou.

He looks around at the sparse but classy mansion. He follows his wife to what used to be her bedroom and he gives her a playful look the moment they enter it.

"Rukia…lets do it here." Ichigo says in a conspiratorial voice. Rukia blushes as she looks at her husband. They'd only recently discovered sex, but they both adore it a great deal.

"We'd be caught for sure." Rukia says as she looks at her handsome husband. Her lip quivers before she runs and leaps into his arms.

"Changed your mind already?" He asks with a lifted eyebrow and a lazy smile, since he didn't even have to argue.

"Fuck it." Rukia says as he closes his lips over hers. He is always amazed that she often has him smiling as he goes to kiss her.

Ichigo slips his hands into her royal robes and starts to remove them.

"Lets do it up against the door so that nobody walks in on us, that way we can enjoy it." Ichigo says into her ear. Rukia nods her head yes as he completely disrobes her.

She wastes no time in returning the favor and he lifts her up in the air and lets her back rest against the door as she wraps her legs around him.

"Kiss me, Ichigo." Rukia says in a bossy command, and Ichigo immediately kisses her, without hesitation. He kisses her long and furiously until he finally pulls away and stares at her face.

"You're so beautiful…Rukia." Ichigo whispers as he stares into her eyes.

"I love you Ichigo, but this is going to have to be a quickie before someone busts me in the head with the door." Rukia tells him urgently, and Ichigo chuckles.

"One quickie, coming up as demanded by my wife, the Queen." Ichigo says as he lifts her up a little bit to position her over him for a perfect entry.

Rukia stares into his eyes and watches his eyes roll back in utter pleasure as he lowers her down over him. She smiles at that expression. It's so cute, sexy, and such a turn on.

He seems to have taken her quite seriously when she said it had to be a quickie, because he's groaning furiously and excitedly within moments, and Rukia's eyes widen at how quickly he can be brought into such a frenzy as he makes love to her up against the door of her old bedroom.

The whole thing is exciting for Rukia and she loves to watch Ichigo's face whenever he's climaxing, because it's always such a profound expression, and it's the only time in the world that he looks totally and completely helpless to his feelings of love for her.

And the look that he always gives her after? Thrilling. He always looks at her as though she just granted his dying wish, and he always looks so happy and in love after they make love. It's already his habit to stare at her adoringly for a long moment after they make love. It's like he's willing her to understand that he loves her so much he can't even say it, and Rukia _always_ understands.

He's pulled her away from the door, even though they've finished making love, he hasn't completely slipped out of her yet, and he presses a loving kiss against her lips.

This is how Byakuya discovers them. He opens the door, his eyes bulge out of his head and he immediately closes it. He had directly met the eyes of his sister's husband when the door had opened in that brief moment.

Byakuya can hardly believe Ichigo looked at him as though he was going to kill him.

_This is my home! Who in the hell does he think he is?_

Byakuya feels a great anger in the pit of his belly.

_I can't believe that uncouth kid is actually the Spirit King._

Byakuya patiently waits for the couple to emerge from Rukia's former bedroom fully clothed while he silently seethes at having been witness to them copulating.

It doesn't take long for the door to open, and a blushing King and Queen emerge, with Rukia holding a bag with some of her prized possessions in it.

"Byakuya ni-sama, I've come back to retrieve a few things." Rukia says nervously.

"Won't you both stay for dinner?" Byakuya asks her softly, pretending he didn't see her making love to her husband a few minutes ago. Rukia glances at Ichigo who nods his assent and Rukia smiles and nods at her brother.

"We'd be delighted to join you." Rukia says happily.

"Wonderful. What are your plans now?" Byakuya asks her next as he looks down at the bag she's carrying.

"I wanted to visit with Captain Ukitake while I was here." Rukia says hesitantly.

"I have to see Kenpachi or he'll cry about it, we also have to stop by the Shiba residence. Any idea where she's at these days?" Ichigo asks Byakuya casually. He receives a shrug.

"Ukitake would probably know." Byakuya says in an emotionless tone. Ichigo and Rukia nod.

"We'll be back after we visit with a few people, ni-sama," Rukia tells him with a bow.

Ichigo drags her away without saying a word to Byakuya, since he's a little bit pissed that the guy barged in on Rukia's bedroom when the door had been shut. Surely he had sensed their reiatsu on the other side.

_What a jackass_.

They hurry to see Ukitake for awhile who looks absolutely tickled pink to be among the first that they decided to see upon arriving back. He smiles his usual friendly smile and bows deeply to them both.

"Welcome back, it's wonderful to see you!" Ukitake says in a heartfelt voice, and that is when Kiyone and Sentarou both stick their heads in and start bickering about who's going to go and get Ukitake and his guests tea.

Rukia smiles and shakes her head as she smiles at the familiarity of it all.

"Thanks," Rukia says as she grins at him.

"How are you doing, Ichigo-kun?" Ukitake asks and Ichigo grins at him. Sentarou and Kiyone's voices fade away as they keep arguing while they fetch.

"I can't complain. Married life is pretty nice." Ichigo says happily, and Ukitake laughs. Rukia blushes, and Ichigo just grins at her, daring her to get mad.

"I didn't expect that the two of you would have any problems in that area." Ukitake says while chuckling.

"Captain Ukitake, do you by chance know where Shiba Kuukaku is residing these days?" Rukia asks him to get the subject off of married life.

"Yes I know where she's at. I'll draw you a map when you're ready to leave," Ukitake says with a smile as Kiyone and Sentarou suddenly appear with tea for the three of them.

Kiyone is serving Ichigo and Rukia, and Sentarou is serving Ukitake. It was the only kind of compromise they could come up with in their arguing.

"Thanks," Ichigo and Rukia say at the same time to Kiyone. Ukitake chuckles as he nods his head in thanks to Sentarou. Rukia and Ichigo look at him, in confusion since they're getting used to talking in sync.

"We didn't really have much of a chance to talk in between Aizen's death and your marriage, I really am glad at how things have turned out for the two of you. Congratulations." Ukitake tells them in his usual sincere friendly voice.

"Thank you very much, I'm sorry that we didn't get a chance to talk, but Ichigo's father was really rushing everything once Aizen was defeated." Rukia tells him with a sigh.

"Was the former Spirit King still alive?" Ukitake asks in interest.

"No. My mother told me that he died the same day that Rukia gave me her Shinigami powers, and he had warned her that I'd be taking over very soon." Ichigo tells him with a grin.

"So Aizen had been right after all, that the throne was empty." Ukitake says with surprised eyes. Ichigo and Rukia grin at each other and then shake their heads at Ukitake.

"My mother sat on the throne in between the former Spirit King dying and me taking the throne. She was the temporary ruler until I took my place." Ichigo tells him softly. "The throne was never empty, even now with us not there, it still is not empty." Ichigo tells him with a grin.

"What?" Ukitake asks in confusion.

"Though the throne might be vacant, it isn't actually empty. If Aizen had tried to take over the throne, he'd have been killed. You have to be accepted by the former or current Spirit King in order to take that particular place. The throne is deadly to most people." Rukia explains in more detail.

"I had no idea," Ukitake murmurs, surprised at the information he'd just been given.

"It's not supposed to be widely known, since it helps to identify people who commit treason against Soul Society or the royal dimension." Ichigo tells Ukitake, who nods solemnly.

"I won't repeat a word of what you just said."

"Thanks. I'll leave Rukia here to visit with you awhile, I'm going to go find Kenpachi before he loses his mind from sensing my reiatsu, knowing I haven't come to visit him yet." Ichigo tells them with a grin and a wave before he walks out of the office to give Rukia some time alone with her former superior officer.

Ichigo closes his eyes, locates Kenpachi through his reiatsu and uses shunpo to be in front of the man moments later.

"Icchy!" Yachiru reacts first and Kenpachi smiles.

"You're even stronger now." Kenpachi says with a nod of his head.

"We're still not fighting though," Ichigo says with a grin. Kenpachi nods.

"I'm not allowed to fight the Spirit King. I was dragged into old man Yamamoto's office to be lectured about that right after you got married to that girl you've been in love with since I met you." Zaraki tells him with a disappointed sigh.

"It's alright, you'll find someone else to fight." Ichigo tells him with a grin. Zaraki sighs again.

"I haven't had a good fight in a long time," Zaraki tells him in a voice that says he's clearly disappointed.

"It'll happen," Ichigo says, still smiling.

"Icchy, how is it being the king?" Yachiru asks with a big smile.

"It's pretty peaceful, unlike my life right before I went with Rukia to live there." Ichigo tells her with a smile.

"Are you going to have lots of babies?" Yachiru asks with a big grin. Zaraki laughs at that question as Ichigo blushes.

"I hope to," Ichigo admits to the pink haired terror who immediately starts laughing.

"You and Rukia are trying?" Renji's voice sounds from behind Ichigo and he turns around and grins at his wife's friend.

"Every chance we get," Ichigo replies, earning a laugh from Zaraki and Renji.

"Where is Rukia?" Renji asks Ichigo curiously.

"She was visiting with Ukitake when I left them to visit alone and came here to see Kenpachi." Ichigo answers him with a smile.

"What's it like in the royal dimension?" Renji asks next with a grin.

"It's really peaceful, very luxurious, and it's an amazingly relaxing place." Ichigo answers immediately.

He is really happy now that he's gotten the chance to reconnect with his mother, and even better, Rukia has gotten to know her too. They get along wonderfully, and it truly feels like home, being there with his mom and Rukia.

Rukia has discussed bringing Renji in, but Ichigo thinks that he's needed in Soul Society. He'd rather wait until there are more people with bankai in Soul Society before they pull Renji in, and after he'd explained it like that, Rukia had agreed to hold off until Soul Society is fortified again before inviting Renji to serve in the Royal Guard of Division Zero.

"I'm really happy for you," Renji says with a grin. "Even though I miss seeing the two of you a lot." Renji tells him with a look.

"We haven't been gone that long, there were things Rukia wanted to get from here, and we'll be visiting rather frequently, I think." Ichigo tells him with a grin. "It's no use having all of these powers if I never use them." Ichigo says with a sigh, causing Kenpachi to start laughing.

"Don't tell me you're feeling restless already!" Kenpachi says with a smirk.

"Nah, not yet, Rukia keeps me busy enough in the royal dimension, but I still will want to test out my powers on something I can kill to see how different I am, now that I've taken the throne." Ichigo tells them, and Kenpachi laughs again.

"She keeps you busy does she?" He asks him with a knowing grin, causing Ichigo to blush and Renji to look embarrassed.

"Yeah, she does." Ichigo admits, still blushing. Kenpachi just laughs harder, and Renji tries hard not to get a mental image of his childhood friend and his orange haired pal getting it on. He fails at that attempt, he can clearly picture them getting it on.

"What are you all laughing about?" Rukia asks from behind Renji, and Ichigo doesn't meet her gaze. Thank goodness for Renji's presence, he distracts Rukia from her husband as he greets her.

"Rukia! I was hoping I would see you, I knew you were here!" Renji says excitedly before he gives her a big hug. Rukia laughs and hugs him back. Renji pulls back and gets a good look at her royal robes.

You can tell she still has her black Shinigami robes on but over them she and Ichigo both wear a white robe with silver and gold sewn into the trim, and they wear symbols of royalty on their backs. The white robes tie with a silver belt with gold trim, along with their royal symbols being silver and gold on their backs.

"Do you like my new threads?" Rukia asks with a grin as she slowly twirls around to give him the full effect.

"You always did have an air of dignity about you…it's only natural since you were destined to be the queen of Soul Society." Renji tells her softly. Rukia grins at him.

"Ichigo and I are about to go see Shiba Kuukaku and Ganju. Want to come along?" Rukia asks Renji with a grin. Renji smiles back.

"Of course!" Renji tells her, and Ichigo gives Kenpachi a grin.

"I'll see you again soon," Ichigo tells him.

"Let me know if you want to spar with me, I'm down anytime!" Kenpachi yells as Ichigo takes his place next to Rukia.

"Bye, royal lovers!" Yachiru yells with a wave, causing Rukia and Ichigo both to glance back with a start.

"That was new," Rukia says with a bit of a laugh. Ichigo nods his head in agreement.

"I wasn't expecting that to come out of her mouth." He says in agreement.

"So we're headed to the Shiba residence?" Renji says conversationally.

"Yes. She gets mad when Ichigo doesn't come to see her when he's in Soul Society. I'm sure that won't change now that he resides in the royal dimension rather than the living world." Rukia tells Renji with a smile.

"She gets downright unreasonable," Ichigo grumbles as he remembers how she punched him in the face several times for taking too long to come visit her.

"Then we're going to eat with Byakuya ni-sama before going back to the royal dimension." Rukia tells Renji with a grin.

The next two hours pass by swiftly as Rukia and Ichigo hang out with Kuukaku and Ganju.

"That robe makes you look even more like a dandelion." Ganju had told Ichigo with a smirk, earning him a punch in the face from Ichigo.

"You two knock it off!" Kuukaku had warned, which had caused Ichigo and Ganju to both settle down instantly. Rukia had choked back a giggle. It seems like Ichigo is always the most afraid of women. Renji had smiled at that too.

They get teased about their newly married status by the siblings and they promise to visit the next time that they're in Soul Society.

They head back to Soul Society and separate from Renji to go join Byakuya at the Kuchiki mansion to eat.

The meal ends up being very uncomfortable since Byakuya seemed happy to sit in silence, and Ichigo doesn't usually eat dinner in silence. Rukia would only speak when spoken to, which made Ichigo feel like he was initiating all of the dinner conversation.

When they finally finished, Ichigo let out an audible sigh of relief, causing Byakuya to wonder again how someone so uncouth can be the Spirit King.

"We'll see you again, ni-sama." Rukia said softly to her brother, since she could sense the tension building between her brother and husband.

"Next time try to work on being a bit more hospitable." Ichigo told him in an aggravated tone, causing Rukia to gasp and Byakuya's eyes to glitter in rage.

"I apologize if things weren't up to your expectations," Byakuya bites out in a very offended manner.

"It wasn't the food or the furniture that bothered me, it's how you invite us to join you and then act like you're eating alone. It's uncivilized." Ichigo tells him in a short voice.

Rukia drags her husband away from her brother before they start a real fight, and as she does, Byakuya leans against the doorframe and tries not to smile.

_He had a point. I didn't even think about it like that._

"It's alright, as long as he loves her as much as he does, I'll have to put up with it." Byakuya says with a sigh, before he heads back inside. He knows the moment the dimension opens up, because the light infiltrates the mansion and makes everything look brighter while the path is open.

Ichigo is holding Rukia's bag and they wave at the crowd of people who have gathered to see them off, back to their home.

Ichigo leans down to whisper in Rukia's ear as they enter the royal dimension.

"Lets go to the bedroom." He says to her, and Rukia grins and nods. They flash step to get to their destination as quickly as possible.


	59. As Requested: Jealousy 2

**A/N-I had a request to do the jealousy on Rukia's end rather than Ichigo's end, and so here it is, though it has nothing to do with a water park this time. I hope you enjoy it! As always, this is dedicated to the one who requested it :)**

_Jealousy 2_

When Rukia hops into Ichigo's bedroom after having been gone to Soul Society for a month, she breathes a sigh of happiness as her eyes settle around the familiar room that she likes to spend her time in when she's here. Not because of the room itself, but because of the good company that comes along with this particular room.

She glances around but does not see the man she is hoping to see, so she hops in and sits down on his bed, and imagines the look of shock he'll wear when he sees her again after a full month of being apart. His face is always the most expressive whenever she comes back after being absent, even if it's just for a few days.

_He probably doesn't even realize how happy his eyes get, and how his face looks when he sees me after a short period apart. _

Rukia smiles and leans back on the bed, and she accidentally gets so comfortable that she falls asleep in his bed, perfectly visible to anybody who comes in, since she's in a gigai.

Nobody ends up coming in and finding her though, and when Rukia wakes up, it's the middle of the night, and Ichigo still isn't in his room.

_Where in the hell is he? _

Rukia concentrates on the feeling of his reiatsu, and she's surprised to feel him downstairs. She creeps out of the bedroom and finds him passed out on the couch in the family room. She wonders why he didn't just wake her up if he came home, and then she wonders if he even knows that she's here.

She's sure he knows since he's very familiar with her reiatsu, but if he wasn't consciously thinking about it, he might not even realize.

Rukia is tempted to touch him, but she refrains from doing so, and she goes back to his bed to lay down. She ends up falling back asleep, and when she wakes up, it's Saturday morning, and certainly Ichigo should be home, but she cannot sense him anywhere in the house.

After several hours of wondering, Rukia decides to see for herself what Ichigo is up to. She follows him based on his reiatsu and she lands on a cell phone tower high above where she sees him walking, with Inoue and Tatsuki on either side of him, as he carries their shopping bags.

"He went shopping with the girls?" Rukia asks out loud in shock.

_Ichigo hates shopping. Why is he shopping with them? I always have to rip his hair out to take me shopping_.

Rukia sees Inoue start glancing around as if she can sense Rukia's reiatsu and Rukia glides into a tree where she has much better cover, and masks her reiatsu as much as she can, not that it will help much with Inoue's detecting ability.

Soon, all three have stopped and are looking all around. Ichigo is the only one who looks up though, but luckily for Rukia, she's hidden from his view.

_They feel me. Damn_.

Rukia heads to Urahara's shop in hopes that he has something that can help her mask her presence from everyone. She's in luck.

"I have exactly what you're looking for!" Urahara sings to Rukia as he hands her a small bottle with an eyedropper in it.

"What is this?" Rukia asks him suspiciously.

"It's called Hidden Treasure. Three drops on your tongue and you'll be completely masked from everyone for six hours. The only way they'll know you're there is if they actually see you with their own eyes." Urahara assures her.

"How long does it take before this stuff is in effect?" Rukia asks him next.

"One minute is all it takes." Urahara tells her with a confident nod. Rukia nods and pays the man. She walks out of his shop and uses the Hidden Treasure immediately. Three drops before she starts to concentrate on Ichigo's reiatsu, and she realizes that it's heading for Urahara's shop, at an alarming rate of speed.

"Shit." Rukia says as she quickly hops up onto Urahara's roof and up into the trees. She sees Ichigo appear after using shunpo, directly in front of Urahara's shop before he looks up towards her position.

"Rukia!" Ichigo bellows from the ground, but Rukia doesn't answer.

One minute has never felt so long. Rukia immediately uses shunpo to begin to put distance between herself and Ichigo, but he senses her right now, and he's quickly following behind her.

"I only have to evade him for one minute." Rukia says to encourage herself as she shunpo in different directions with each step she takes.

_Shit. He's gaining on me. I have to go faster._

Rukia picks up the pace and concentrates on making her shunpo distance even longer.

_Damn. How long has he been chasing me, and how long until he can't sense me anymore?_

Rukia continuously changes directions until she can sense him no longer following after her. He'd been so dangerously close to catching her too.

"Finally!" Rukia says with a giant sigh of relief, as she turns around and heads for Ichigo's direction. When she finds him, he appears to be standing very still with his eyes closed as if he's reaching out to feel for her reiatsu. She watches him from a tree branch, with the trunk covering her body, so that if he looks her way he won't see her.

Ichigo stands there for a long time, and Rukia is surprised at how hard he appears to be trying to catch the trail of her reiatsu which is totally hidden at the moment. She sees his head droop a little after a few minutes, and he slowly trudges back to wherever he must have left his body. Rukia follows secretly, wondering why he left his house without even acknowledging her since she finally came back from Soul Society.

When Ichigo arrives back at his body, Inoue and Tatsuki appear to be trying to hide the fact that his body is laying lifelessly on a bench.

"Did you find Kuchiki-san?" Inoue asks him softly.

"She was definitely here. I almost caught her, but then I couldn't sense her anymore at all." Ichigo grumbles at them. Tatsuki looks a little bit confused, but Inoue nods her head understandingly.

"Do you think she went back?" Inoue asks him softly, feeling a glimmer of hope that maybe she does have a chance with Kurosaki-kun.

"I don't know. I can't sense her at all, and it's bothering me now." Ichigo says in a low mutter. He leans over to pick up their shopping bags.

"I'll let you know if I sense her," Inoue whispers to Ichigo who nods gratefully.

Inoue wonders if Kuchiki-san jumped to the wrong conclusion when she saw Kurosaki-kun carrying their shopping bags.

After all, Rukia had left town before Ichigo had been auctioned off as a slave for a week. Between Tatsuki and Inoue, they managed to bid the highest price and have been sharing Ichigo as their slave for the week.

The money went to a good cause and his teacher had offered to give him extra credit if he participated. Considering his grades have suffered a bit from all of his interruptions from studies due to hollows, he had reluctantly agreed to be one of many who were auctioned off as slave for a week.

Today is the last day, and Ichigo is glad, because he's sick and tired of being their slave.

"Are you two done shopping yet?" Ichigo asks them impatiently. He can't wait for the day to finally be over. Tatsuki's smile is evil as she looks at him with narrowed eyes.

"You'd like that wouldn't you Ichigo? Too bad, we have more places to go!" Tatsuki says with a laugh. Ichigo sighs at the indignity that he's been forced to endure this week as their slave. He wishes he would have never agreed to it.

Rukia follows Ichigo all around Karakura Town as he spends the day with the two girls.

Rukia can feel how tight her chest is as she watches him spend his day as he would if she weren't here. She's really shocked at how much it hurts, to see him spending time with other girls, carrying their things, and going into whichever store they point at.

Rukia follows for hours, and when he disappears inside of Inoue's apartment with the two girls, Rukia can feel a great emptiness inside of her.

She jumps from tree to tree as she tries to clear her mind.

She had never truly realized it before today, but she had always considered Ichigo to be _hers_.

Ichigo never paid attention to those girls as much as he is now that he thinks that she's gone.

She finds a cell phone tower to perch on and so she balances on the thin rails at the top as she looks down over the city.

_Is this where I really belong?_

Rukia shakes her head. The happy expression that Ichigo usually has when he first sees her after a period of absence pops into her brain. She sighs.

_Maybe I'll have to make a few adjustments so that his life doesn't revolve around me when I'm here_.

Rukia stays out pretty late, just thinking, and she had taken another three drops to keep her presence concealed from Ichigo. When she finally hops into his window, he's passed out on his bed, slobbering a little bit on his pillow. Rukia grins and stares at him for a minute before she heads over to the closet and gets inside.

Rukia only sleeps for a few hours, and she's careful to slip out and take the drops first thing in the morning before Ichigo can rise from his own deep sleep.

Her reiatsu had become unmasked in the night and Ichigo had dreams about her since he could sense her.

When Ichigo gets up, he looks groggily around for Rukia, but she's nowhere to be seen or sensed. Ichigo rubs his eyes.

_Was it a trick of the mind? I was so sure she had come back._

Rukia walks around the streets of Karakura Town feeling extremely jealous as she looks at all of the little shops she'd like Ichigo to take her in. He always acted like it was such a big hassle to take her out, claimed he didn't shop with girls.

She's so lost in her own little pity party that she doesn't realize she's been spotted by Ichigo, who decided to go on a walk in the morning to clear his head. When he sees Rukia, he's completely confused since he can't sense her reiatsu at all. He ends up following her for quite awhile. She's so caught up in her thoughts that she hasn't noticed him at all.

Ichigo watches her stare wistfully at some shops, and it occurs to him that he's never taken her shopping at these places before. He usually only ever took her to the arcade, where she seemed happy enough, but yesterday, Inoue had sworn she could feel Rukia's reiatsu as he shopped with her and Tatsuki.

_That has to be Rukia. She must have seen me shopping with them, and now she doesn't understand why I always told her no. She has no idea the hell I've been through this past week, no scratch that this past month since she decided to take an extra long hiatus to Soul Society. I know she was ordered there, but still!_

Rukia walks along, looking at the shops, completely oblivious to Ichigo behind her as she's concentrating too much on her own feelings. She finally finds a park bench and she sits down and takes a deep breath.

"I'll just stay out of his way until a hollow appears," Rukia mutters quietly, even as she feels Ichigo's reiatsu. As she's about to turn around, two hands settle down on her shoulders.

_Damn, I wasn't paying close enough attention to my surroundings._

"What in the hell is that supposed to mean? When have you ever felt it necessary to stay out of my way?" Ichigo's voice asks her in a low voice. Rukia shuts her eyes.

_Of course, he just had to hear that too._

"I'd rather stay out of your way than to be lied to." Rukia answers softly as she stands, away from his reach so that his hands fall back to his sides. His mouth drops open slightly at how she got right to the point. He never has to wonder why she's angry.

"When did I lie to you?" Ichigo asks, feeling a bit of amusement bubbling under the surface.

_Does she actually believe I was enjoying myself with Tatsuki and Inoue? Impossible._

"It doesn't really matter." Rukia says as she turns to walk away from him. She doesn't count on him running after her to capture her gently by her arms, effectively stopping her from walking any further away. He gets in front of her but keeps holding onto her arms.

"When did you get back?" Ichigo asks her next with a raised eyebrow. Rukia tries hard not to react to that question, but she blushes.

"Two nights ago." Rukia mutters at him. She is very aware of his hands on her arms. There's a burning sensation where he's touching her.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Ichigo asks in amazement. He hadn't even realized she'd gotten back that long ago.

"I waited in your room for you to do just that." Rukia answers in a low voice.

Ichigo remembers. He'd been so pooped from being Tatsuki and Inoue's slave for a day that he had crumpled onto the couch and passed out when he'd gotten home. He hadn't even wanted to think about climbing a set of stairs.

Then, he'd woken up a little late and had to rush to his slave duties. Tatsuki and Inoue were a bit annoyed that he never changed his clothes, but he told them all he did was sleep in between serving their outrageous demands. Inoue at least, had acted a tiny bit guilty, but Tatsuki had laughed mercilessly at him.

"This is because you saw me shopping with Tatsuki and Inoue, isn't it?" Ichigo asks, deciding to bring it out into the open. She might as well know the truth. Rukia's eyes widen, and then she looks away.

"You? Shop with a girl? No way. You told me yourself that you don't do things like that, didn't you?" Rukia says sarcastically at first, and then she asks him the last part very softly.

Ichigo's mouth drops open.

_She is! She's jealous! The poker faced, mysterious, and amazing Kuchiki Rukia is actually jealous! Wow. I don't believe it._

"You think I would do that because I actually wanted to? Yeah right. Let me tell you all of what happened in the past month that you were gone." Ichigo says as he keeps holding her arms and informs her completely of the hell he's been going through since the day she left.

When Rukia realizes he was auctioned off as slave for a week, his behavior certainly seems to make more sense. She suddenly feels extremely idiotic, and that feeling just worsens when his explanation is complete, and he's waiting for some kind of response from her.

"What a barbaric thing to do to another human being," Rukia mutters softly even as she blushes in embarrassment.

"I agree completely," Ichigo says, unable to argue with that viewpoint of it, particularly after his hellish week. He thinks he could easily go several months without seeing either of those two after what they've put him through.

"I see," Rukia says, feeling like a jerk for jumping to all of the wrong conclusions.

"I'm still waiting for you to explain why you'd feel it necessary to stay out of my way unless a hollow appears," Ichigo asks her with a pointed stare. Rukia is horrified to feel her cheeks burning.

"Well, I was beginning to think that I'm in your space too much," Rukia tells him softly. Ichigo smirks at her.

"Wrong. You were jealous." Ichigo informs her, and Rukia's eyes widen.

"Hardly," Rukia sputters, but Ichigo chuckles at her.

"I didn't expect for you to admit it, but don't think I don't know. You were completely jealous." Ichigo says as he finally lets his hands drop from her arms.

"I was _not_-" Rukia starts to say, but she's interrupted by Ichigo.

"Be careful not to let a lie come from those lips." Ichigo says with a hard look into her eyes.

Rukia can only gape at him for a moment. How ironic that he's throwing lying into her face right now, after she'd told him minutes ago that she would rather leave him alone than be lied to. Rukia glares at him for a minute and stomps away. Ichigo feels a smile coming to his lips even as he follows her happily.

"Maybe I'll go back to Soul Society." Rukia mumbles, and Ichigo catches her by the arms again, and spins her around swiftly.

"What did you just say?" He asks her as he stares down into her eyes.

"Maybe I'll go back." Rukia says again, not exactly liking the look he's getting in his eyes.

"Like I'm letting you go back as long as you're acting unreasonable. I'll be keeping a close eye on you, until you're back to normal." Ichigo tells her in a low voice, never letting his eyes meet hers. Rukia can't help but to smile at his words, and Ichigo grins back at her.

_I want to kiss him._

Rukia only lets herself think about it for a moment, and before she can talk herself out of it, she pulls his head down to hers and kisses him full on the lips. Ichigo is very shocked at first, but he never pulls away from her, and he starts to participate moments after she gets things going. When they finally pull away from each other, Rukia grins at him.

"What's normal is bound to change, as our relationship does." Rukia whispers, and Ichigo just stares down at her and nods.

"I never thought we'd get together like _that_." Ichigo mutters, causing Rukia to grin up at him.

"Oh yeah? How did you think it would happen?" She asks him with a grin.

"I thought it would be me making the first move." Ichigo admits pathetically, causing Rukia to literally fall to the grass in a hale of giggles.

"Like I could possibly have waited that long!" Rukia says as she clutches her stomach. Ichigo blushes at the insinuation that he was taking way too long to make a move.

"I was always afraid, you never react the way I think you're going to. You're always surprising me with your reactions to things." Ichigo admits as she collects herself and picks herself up out of the grass.

"You're quite unobservant sometimes, the reason I don't act the way you expect me to, is because you don't think deeply enough about my reactions." Rukia tells him with a meaningful look.

"What do you mean I'm unobservant?" Ichigo says with a glare.

"I mean if you had been more observant, you'd have seen that I fell in love with you ages ago." Rukia whispers up at him, causing Ichigo's eyes to soften instantly.

For the first time, he grabs Rukia up in his arms and kisses her as deeply as he can. When she wraps her arms around him and kisses him back fervently, he realizes that she's right.

_I guess she's loved me for as long as I've loved her…and now we're together._

"I love you, Rukia." Ichigo says against her lips. She smiles happily at him.

"And I love you." Rukia whispers back with a happy smile.

"Now that I have a girlfriend, there are things I want to do…like take you someplace private so we can keep on kissing like that." Ichigo whispers with a blush.

"Lead the way," Rukia tells him as she nods her head in acceptance.

He takes her hand to lead her away to a quiet place where they can finally start expressing all of their pent up emotions for one another, and he smiles at his newfound happiness.

_To think that good things can come out of jealousy. Who knew?_


	60. Difficult Confessions

**A/N- I am still working on putting out a couple of more requests, but I wrote this one away from my own computer, and so I'm posting it. Anyone who loved Urahara's Mirrors will be pleased to know that I'll be putting out another chapter for that small series, due to two requests I received to continue it. For now, please enjoy one of my own ideas until I am able to finish the requests. **

**Theresa Crane :)**

_Difficult Confessions_

Rukia feels her heart stop at what she just heard Inoue say. She had been perched in Ichigo's windowsill waiting for Ichigo to arrive back with a bucket of ice cream for them in the hot weather, when she had seen Inoue go running after Ichigo while he was still on his way to get the ice cream.

Thinking that there might be trouble, Rukia had glided out onto the electrical wires in her Shinigami form and had caught up in time to hear what Inoue had to say to Ichigo.

"Kurosaki-kun, I'm so happy I spotted you as I was leaving from hanging out with Tatsuki-chan!" Inoue had said first, in a breathless voice from running as fast as she could to catch up to him.

"Inoue, what's up?" Ichigo had asked as he'd turned around. He looked at Inoue, waiting for a response, and he had seemed confused when she suddenly became very nervous and fidgety.

"Kurosaki-kun...there is something that I have been wanting to tell you for a long time now." Inoue had said with a blush creeping up her face. Ichigo had looked at her closely, looking more and more puzzled by her behavior as she spoke.

"Okay, I'm listening." Ichigo had said as he had given her his full attention. Inoue had blushed and had blurted out the statement that had made Rukia's heart stop.

"I'm in love with you...I have been for a long time now." Inoue says in a rush, even as she turns redder. Rukia watches Ichigo's face turn completely shocked, and his mouth opens and closes a few times at Inoue's confession.

"No." Rukia whispers as she stares down at the scene.

Inoue is looking up at Ichigo hopefully, and Ichigo is looking at her with a shocked expression on his face. Ichigo finally scratches his head as he looks down at the girl who he considers a friend with a regretful expression.

"I really don't know what to say." Ichigo says quietly, not really wanting to hurt her feelings, and not wanting to lead her on either. He doesn't know why she has to love him when he's never acted interested in her.

"I'm sorry if I shocked you," Inoue says softly. Ichigo looks down at her with a bit of discomfort.

"It's not that. It's really nice that you feel so strongly about me, I'm flattered and all, but I don't feel that way about you. I care for you as a friend." Ichigo tells her very softly. Inoue's eyes fill up with tears, but she nods her head.

"I know. You're in love with Kuchiki-san aren't you." Inoue says in a voice barely above a whisper. Ichigo looks at her with a deer in the headlights type look.

"Uh..." Ichigo says as he looks at her uncomfortably.

"It's okay, you don't have to say anything. I pretty much figured out that was the case." Inoue tells him before she lets out a big sigh.

"I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything," Ichigo tells her, feeling badly at how down she looks. He can understand. If Rukia rejected him, he's sure he'd probably feel identical to what Inoue is feeling right now.

"I know. You can't help who you love. The heart wants what the heart wants." Inoue says with a small sniffle. Ichigo feels really bad now.

"Are you going to be okay?" He asks her with concern.

"As long as you promise you won't stop being my friend." Inoue tells him as she looks up at him with watery eyes.

"Promise." Ichigo says instantly, a bit relieved at how a small smile appears on her face.

_It could be worse. She could throw herself at me and start bawling._

"Thank you, Kurosaki-kun." Inoue says softly. Ichigo nods his head at her and watches when she excuses herself to head towards her own home. Once she's out of earshot, Ichigo lets out a big breath of air.

"Damn, that was so fucking uncomfortable." Ichigo mutters in a low voice before he heads back on his mission of getting a bucket of ice cream for he and Rukia.

He suddenly finds himself worried that Rukia will treat him the same way he treated Inoue when she confessed to him. He truly hopes it doesn't happen like that. It's the fear that she will reject him that keeps him from confessing to her like Inoue did with him.

Ichigo purchases some chocolate mint ice cream, since Rukia has yet to try it, and he hurries home with it so that it doesn't melt on the way.

When he gets up to his bedroom with the bucket, he finds Rukia sitting on his bed, apparently deep in thought. Ichigo wonders if he should tell her about Inoue's confession, but then she might ask him why he's not interested in Inoue, and if she does that, he'd have to tell her it's because he's completely in love with her. He also doesn't want to hide the truth from her either, because if she finds out through Inoue, that could really suck.

"Ichigo, I have something to tell you." Rukia says suddenly, causing Ichigo to look at her in surprise.

"Okay. What is it?" Ichigo asks her as he sets the bucket of ice cream on his desk.

"I saw Inoue run after you as you left here, and I heard what she said to you." Rukia says, causing Ichigo to feel a complete sense of panic in his stomach.

"You did?" Ichigo asks in a horrified whisper.

"Yes. Will you tell me why you turned her down?" Rukia asks in an even voice. She doesn't want to give away her happiness that Ichigo turned down Inoue until she knows for sure that he did it because he wants to be with her instead. Ichigo turns bright red and he refuses to meet Rukia's eyes.

"I don't want to talk about that." Ichigo tells her in a very embarrassed voice.

"Please, Ichigo?" Rukia asks in a voice that shows she's desperate to hear the answer. Ichigo glances at her in surprise and then sighs in defeat.

_This isn't how I wanted to do it though._

"Fine. I turned her down because I don't share her feelings." Ichigo tells her as he crosses his arms and meets her gaze fully.

He's shocked to see the absolute look of relief slide across her face before she carefully masks her emotions, and he feels his heart beat a little faster.

"Ah, I see." Rukia tells him before she slides around him to grab a spoon off of the top of the bucket, and hands him one as well. Ichigo watches her face get all happy and excited like a small child when she gets a look at the green colored ice cream.

"It's mint chocolate chip." Ichigo tells her as her eyes grow huge.

"It's green! Wow!" Rukia squeals, as she forgets their very serious conversation just moments ago. Ichigo watches, transfixed as Rukia digs into the ice cream and her eyes widen at the pleasant flavor.

"Do you like it?" Ichigo asks her with a grin, as her face looks like she just ate her favorite food.

"I love it! It's so delicious!" Rukia exclaims excitedly before she sticks her spoon back into the bucket. Ichigo sticks his spoon in for a bite, but it's far more enjoyable to watch her eating it. She's too cute when she gets all excited over sweets like this.

He suddenly remembers how Don Kan'Onji blackmailed her with sweets to learn where he lived. She's always had a weakness for sweets, ever since he met her.

"I had a feeling you'd like that flavor." Ichigo says as he watches her close her eyes at the wondrous taste in her mouth.

"You did a great job, picking this one out!" Rukia says as she starts to really focus on the ice cream.

"Thanks." Ichigo mutters at her, before she completely ignores him in favor of giving the ice cream her full attention.

Now that she's barely paying attention to him, he can watch her openly, and admire her as she enjoys the ice cream. He finds it to be so cute and adorable, the way she acts like a little kid when she's presented with a new treat to try.

He's so busy admiring her, that he's caught in the act of it by Rukia herself. Rukia blushes when she sees the intent way that Ichigo is staring at her as she licks the ice cream off of her spoon.

She's no fool, she knows that the look he was just giving her was the type of look a man gives a woman that he's attracted to. He had been openly staring at her when he thought she wasn't watching.

"Why were you looking at me like that?" Rukia asks him softly. Ichigo shakes his head in embarrassment.

"It was nothing." Ichigo says, even as he inwardly groans.

Now that Inoue had the courage to speak up about her feelings for him, how can he not find the courage to tell Rukia how he feels? _No way _is Inoue more brave than him. Rukia accepts his explanation and smiles at him.

"I loved the ice cream." She tells him softly. She has no idea that Ichigo was just waging an inner war with himself, and his response floors her as no other could.

"I love you." Ichigo says it terribly softly, as he gives her a very vulnerable look. Rukia's eyes widen in shock.

"Really?" Rukia whispers at him. Ichigo shakes his head yes, as he stares at her nervously waiting for a response.

"Yes." Ichigo finally says when she's still silent.

"I'm so shocked! I've loved you for the longest time," Rukia admits to him as she smiles at his look of disbelief.

"Thank heavens." Ichigo says before he lets out a big sigh of relief. He closes his eyes and Rukia walks over to him and puts her hands around his neck and clasps them together.

"Thank me, Ichigo." Rukia tells him in an amused voice. Ichigo's eyes widen as he stares down at her nervously.

_I hope I don't fuck this up._

Rukia feels her heart flutter and start to beat at a much faster rate than normal when his face slowly lowers towards hers. When his lips finally touch her lips, she believes that he was well worth the wait. She finds out that she enjoys kissing him a great deal.

When Ichigo finally pulls away and rests his forehead against her own, he hears Rukia take a deep shaky breath before she speaks to him.

"I do believe there's nothing better than mixing sweets and kisses," Rukia tells him, and Ichigo agrees. Her kiss had tasted like the chocolate mint ice cream.

"Thank you for loving me, Rukia." Ichigo whispers to her, and Rukia grins at him.

"You're welcome." Rukia whispers back with a smile before she kisses him again.

_I can never get enough of this._


	61. As Requested: Urahara's Mirrors 4

**A/N-I enjoyed writing this so much, and I hope you all enjoy reading it. It is dedicated to several people. To those who requested it and also those who told me it's their favorite story in the series. I hope it meets all of your expectations!**

_Urahara's Mirrors 4_

As Ichigo watches Rukia's face contort in pain, he begins to have a newfound respect for the strength that a woman possesses.

It hadn't been that long after the wedding that Rukia had discovered that she was indeed pregnant. She began talking about the twins nonstop. She just couldn't wait to hold the babies in her arms, even though she had been barley pregnant.

That's not what she's screaming now though.

"I don't want them coming out!" Rukia says in a pained and frightened voice.

"Oh my god, is she going to be okay?" Ichigo asks as he nervously looked at Rukia's pained face. He can hear his father outside of the door, yelling at them to hurry up and give birth to his first grandchild. Ichigo is very glad he was not born with the womanly ability to give birth.

Watching Rukia has been a trial in itself. He had to have Sado guard the door since his father seemed to think he should be in the delivery room, and both Ichigo and Rukia had not wanted him there. Rukia doesn't think her father-in-law should see her in that state if it isn't necessary.

"Ichigo you asshole! This is all your fault!" Rukia roars as another contraction comes on. Ichigo's eyes widen in horror at the nearly hateful way she's glaring at him. Rukia has never looked at him this way before. Ichigo grabs her hand.

"I'm sorry Rukia!" Ichigo is totally worried now. Rukia is having a long and rough contraction and she squeezes his hand so hard he wonders if his hand will be broken after his first child is finally born. Rukia gives him a death glare and slowly shakes her head in anger at him after the contraction subsides.

"You fucking bastard." Rukia says with her lip curled back in anger. Ichigo wonders how long she'll be angry at him for. She was the one who has talked nonstop about having children, ever since she saw them in Urahara's mirrors.

The doctor can tell that Rukia's behavior is scaring Ichigo and hurting his feelings, and so she glances briefly at him while they wait for the next contraction.

"Don't worry, it's typical during labor." The doctor says quietly to him and Rukia glares at Ichigo some more.

"_Look_ at you." Her voice drips with venom. "Just standing there not feeling any pain. ...Fuck!" Her contraction starts up right after she noted that he wasn't in pain, and her swearing was more in reaction to the contractions than directed at Ichigo.

"How much longer does she have to deal with this agonizing pain?" Ichigo asks desperately. The doctor gives him a nod with a small smile.

"She doesn't have too much longer to go." The doctor says in a voice that tells him things are about to start happening.

"I will break your hands the next time you try and touch me!" Rukia screeches angrily at Ichigo, and at the same time the doctor glances up at Ichigo.

"She's crowning." The doctor says, even though Ichigo can barely hear her over Rukia's screaming. Ichigo lets Rukia squeeze his hand as hard as she wants to, even as waves of guilt wash over him for putting her through this ordeal.

"Our first baby is almost here...hang in there, Rukia!" Ichigo says encouragingly.

"You! You! Damn you Ichigo!" Rukia has tears falling down her face fast, and Ichigo can hear the doctor saying something about the shoulders being out.

Ichigo cringes at the thought of a small human being's shoulders passing out through any orifice in the body and once again, he's glad he was born with male sex parts rather than female sex parts.

"She's here!" The doctor says with a big smile as she pulls a goopy little person out into view. Ichigo thinks he's going to gag at the sight of his first born child, and he keeps his focus on Rukia who's bawling as the nurses start taking care of the necessary first steps once a baby is born. Nobody had told him they weren't very cute when they first came out.

Rukia is still in a lot of pain, and the doctor seems to think the babies will be born within minutes of each other. Rukia starts crying again as the contractions are still as sharp and painful as they can possibly be with another delivery on the way.

"It's almost over," Ichigo tells her even as she squeezes his hand so hard he sucks in his breath to keep from screaming himself. She's a hell of a lot stronger than she appears to be.

Ichigo is so focused on his wife that he doesn't see that the nurse has taken his firstborn to be cleaned off. Rukia's screams are grating on Ichigo's ears but he doesn't dare complain.

"It feels like my body is being ripped in half!" Rukia wails as their son is being born. The contractions last longer than originally anticipated, and their first born daughter is ready to be held immediately after her younger brother is born.

Ichigo takes hold of his little girl, and smiles as he puts her into Rukia's arms.

"Here she is, Rukia." Ichigo says in a voice that sounds totally awed.

Rukia's anger at Ichigo seems to be completely forgotten as she looks in amazement at their tiny baby girl. The baby opens her eyes, and Rukia gets to look into blue eyes identical to her own.

"Oh look! Her eyes are exactly like they were in Urahara's mirrors!" Rukia says with a pleased little laugh as she inspects her daughter from head to toe, and marvels at her tiny fingers and toes.

"She's going to be a heartbreaker." Ichigo says softly to his wife, before he leans over to kiss her on the forehead.

"I can't believe it! She's more amazing than I even realized!" Rukia says as tears of happiness start falling down her face. She starts to coo at her daughter, and Ichigo watches them proudly. His second born child, his first son, is placed into Ichigo's arms moments later, completely cleaned off and ready to meet his father.

Ichigo smiles at the bright orange hair that looks exactly like his own, and he notices immediately that his son has Rukia's eyes as well.

"Wow." Ichigo says as he looks at his son face to face for the very first time.

Rukia looks up at her two men, and more tears fall down her face when she sees the way Ichigo is looking at their son. He looks like he was just bestowed the greatest most miraculous gift in the world.

"They're here." Rukia says in a pleased voice, acting as if she didn't call Ichigo every name in the book a little while ago. Ichigo looks at Rukia, and he feels his love for her grow even stronger. What an amazing woman, to give him two such beautiful children in one go.

"Thank you, Rukia. You're amazing." Ichigo tells her softly as he seems to place all of the credit for their kids on her, now that he's seen her go through the pregnancy and labor of it.

Isshin finally is able to bust into the room, and Sado lands on his back and shoots Ichigo an apologetic look.

"Sorry, once he learned they were clean and ready to meet their family from the doctor, even I couldn't hold him back anymore." Sado says apologetically to Ichigo.

"Rukia-chan! You really are the best girl Ichigo could have married! I have my first grandson and my first granddaughter both on the same day!" Isshin says as he looks in the arms of his son and his son's wife. Ichigo steps over to his father, and give his newborn son a severe warning look.

"Always be wary of grandpa. He's crazy." Ichigo says in in a cheerful voice to his son. "Yes, totally crazy." Ichigo says with a nod of his head before he lets his father take his son.

Isshin can feel the tears pouring down his face as he stares at his grandson. Rukia smiles at the three generations of Kurosaki males all right in front of her. Sado slowly edges forward to get a better look at the miniature Ichigo in Isshin's arms.

"He's beautiful. What are you naming him?" Isshin asks promptly, since Rukia and Ichigo hadn't made up their minds, last time he checked.

"I'm in favor of Ichiro." Rukia says softly before she kisses her daughter's forehead. Ichigo shakes his head.

"Too common." Ichigo says with a shake of his head. Sado looks amazed at the baby boy Isshin is holding but he steps back to let them have their discussion.

"Then how about Akio?" Isshin asks them as he stares at his grandson's bright hair. Rukia smiles, and so does Ichigo.

"I like it." Rukia says with a nod. Ichigo nods too.

"It fits him." Ichigo says with a smile.

"Akio it is! Hi little Akio!" Isshin says as he smiles at the baby.

"Can we switch? I haven't gotten to hold my son yet." Rukia tells Isshin, who immediately agrees. Rukia hands her daughter to Ichigo and Isshin hands Akio to Rukia. Isshin promptly takes the little girl out of Ichigo's arms so that he can properly fawn over her as well.

"Wow, look at this little beauty! She'll be the spitting image of her mother!" Isshin says as the little girl suddenly opens her eyes, and Isshin gets a great look at the blue eyes that seem to have carried over to Rukia and Ichigo's first two children.

"It's going to be strange to see them hanging out together as teenagers." Ichigo says as he imagines them looking almost exactly like he and Rukia, except they both have blue eyes.

"What are you going to name this little lady?" Isshin asks them with a grin as he admires his granddaughter with wide eyes and enjoys the feeling of holding an infant in his arms again. Sado comes closer to get a look at the little girl that his friends gave birth to, and he shoots Ichigo a congratulatory smile.

"Ayako." Rukia says instantly with a stubborn set of her chin. Isshin and Ichigo both smile at that name. It's really a good name to go with Akio, and it also fits her perfectly.

"I won't argue with that, I think it's cute." Ichigo says as he admires his wife for having the fortitude to give birth to these tiny little miracles.

"Wow Ichigo, for the second time you did something right." Isshin says with a smile. "The first thing you did right was marry Rukia-chan, and the second was to get her pregnant with twins!" Isshin says with a grin. "Nice job, son!"

Inoue pops her head into the door.

"Can we come in?" She asks nervously. Rukia grins at her from the bed.

"Tell everyone they can come in now." Rukia says, not realizing how many people had showed up in the waiting room when she had been in labor.

Inoue, Ishida, Renji, Tatsuki, Karin, Yuzu, Byakuya, Yoruichi, Urahara, and Ukitake all file into the room, filling it up completely. Rukia's eyes widen at the amount of people who come into the room, and Byakuya immediately comes over to Rukia and her son to congratulate her. Nobody gets in his way as he does so, either.

"Everything went smoothly?" Byakuya asks her softly with concern. Rukia nods her head and smiles at her brother.

"Would you like to hold your nephew?" Rukia asks him. Ichigo is shocked that Byakuya doesn't seem to mind the orange hair on the kid as he gently takes him from Rukia's arms, and a rarely seen, genuine smile pops onto his face.

"Wow. What's his name?" Byakuya asks, and everyone waits to be introduced to the new Kurosaki family members.

"That is Akio, and over there is Ayako." Rukia says as she points at her daughter in Isshin's arms, in the process of being transferred into Inoue's arms.

"I can already tell, that one is going to be a terror." Renji says as he eyes Akio in Byakuya's arms. Everyone laughs at that.

Everyone seems awed over the arrival of their children and not one person in the room can miss the loving looks traveling between Ichigo and Rukia as they revel in their newfound family.

Ichigo and Rukia proudly accept all of the compliments of beauty and amazement from their friends and family on behalf of their children, with big happy smiles.

Isshin is the last to leave the couple alone with their children after everyone spends close to an hour getting their chance to meet Akio and Ayako. His parting comment earns him a few grumbles from Rukia.

"I'm going to want more grandchildren, don't think you can stop at two!" Isshin says with a big happy smile before he sashays out of their sight.

"I know for sure there will be another at least," Rukia says with a look of dread as she recalls the painful process of giving birth. Ichigo smiles at her as he watches her start to breastfeed their daughter.

"There's no rush, Rukia. I'm thrilled with what we already have." Ichigo tells her as he leans down to kiss her. Rukia tilts her head up and accepts her husband's loving kiss.

"I love you so much, hubby." Rukia says with sheer happiness showing in her eyes. "I hate to think this might not have ever happened without Urahara's mirrors." Rukia tells him softly.

Ichigo leans down to kiss her again.

"Those mirrors didn't make me love you, it would have happened no matter what. I love you so much Rukia, you're gorgeous, amazing, and perfect." Ichigo tells her before he kisses her again. Their son is in a small bassinet waiting for his turn to eat. Rukia and Ichigo meet eyes, and they both share the exact same thoughts.

_Our family. I'll love them always._

**A/N- Ayako means-Pretty Child & Akio means-Bright Boy**


	62. As Requested: Out In The Open

**A/N- I had a request from one of my most loyal reviewers to do a story based on Rukia's first glimpse of Ichigo's mask. I decided to put it at the top of my priority list when this particular request was made. I still have several other requests that were made and I intend to do those as well, so don't worry that I've forgotten them. I hope you all enjoy this story!**

_Out In The Open_

"I don't fucking believe my eyes." Ichigo had said when he'd seen the army of hollow that Aizen had gathered to make the King's Key.

"Don't you dare die. Got it?" Rukia had told him as they'd both jumped into fight. Ichigo had grinned when he had answered her.

"That goes for you too!" He had shouted as he'd made his first kill of the winter war.

That had been two days ago, and since then he's barely had any rest as he has been on a killing spree. He can sense Rukia fighting nearby, and he makes his way closer to her, so that they can fight back to back. He doesn't stop killing hollows as he makes his way to her.

He's always stayed fairly close to her, even though he hasn't actually seen her in hours. The sheer amount of enemies makes it almost impossible to have two seconds to yourself to even look around for a comrade. Ichigo follows her reiatsu as he slices and dices anything stupid enough to get in his way.

He still can't see Rukia, but he suddenly feels her reiatsu shoot up at an alarming rate, and then he notices the opposing reiatsu.

"It's an Espada!" Ichigo says in a worried tone as he uses his shunpo to slice through anything in his way. "Shit! Rukia!" Ichigo says in an extremely worried tone, even as she finally comes into his view.

She is facing a female espada whose breasts are halfway hanging out of her Espada uniform. Ichigo darts around killing more hollows even as he watches closely for any sign that Rukia needs help.

He suddenly notices that Renji is around, doing the same, clearing away hollows from the general area and watching Rukia's back as she faces the female Espada who possesses an insane amount of reiatsu.

"You're not even a seated officer of the Thirteen Court Guardian Squads?" The Espada woman asks Rukia with a bit of a sneer. Rukia just stares at her ferociously.

"Rukia!" Ichigo says in a desperate whisper. He can't distract her now, but she's just staring at the woman, waiting for her to make some sort of move.

"So you have nothing to say for yourself? Then I'll just kill you here and now." The blonde Espada tells Rukia as she flies towards Rukia at the speed of shunpo.

"Dance! Sode No Shirayuki!" Rukia calls out quickly, and Ichigo watches her sword take on its released form. "First dance! White Moon!" Rukia gets it all done so fast that the Espada woman is forced to quickly jump back.

"I knew it. Your spiritual power is enough to be in the ranks of a seated officer, why aren't you one?" The espada asks Rukia, before she prepares to attack again.

"Way of Destruction Number Thirty Three, Blue Fire, Crash Down!" Rukia calls out, sending a powerful blast of kidou hurling for the blonde. The moment the woman moves to dodge, Rukia watches for her position. "Second dance! White Ripple!" Rukia calls out, sending a wave of ice flying at the Espada, who once again has to dodge. She chuckles in amusement as she sizes up Rukia.

"So you're the one who killed Aaroniero Arruruerie." Halibel says with the amusement obvious in her voice. "I already know your techniques." Halibel tells her with an evil grin.

Rukia is suddenly overwhelmed by an array of attacks from Halibel who is using sonido as she attacks with her zanpakutou.

Ichigo sees it all very clearly, in particular the one killing attack that would have made its mark if Ichigo hadn't shot in between the attack and Rukia to block it.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says in shock. She hadn't realized he was watching out for her, even though she had known he was close by.

"You fucking bitch!" Ichigo growls at woman, who has suddenly decided to try another attack on Rukia, ignoring Ichigo completely. Ichigo flies in front of Rukia again, and Halibel lets loose a Gran Rey Cero.

"Ichigo!" Rukia screams as she is frozen on the spot from the reiatsu that Halibel is currently exuding.

Rukia watches fearfully as the powerful attack makes its way towards Ichigo who is directly in front of her, and she feels exactly like she did when she watched him charge at the released Soukyoku in Soul Society for her.

"Bankai. Tensa Zangetsu." Ichigo says it so softly that Rukia doesn't even hear it.

All of a sudden, as the Gran Rey Cero is about to hit Ichigo and obliterate him, an even stronger reiatsu seems to flare up and Rukia is brought to her knees involuntarily as the cero seems to explode all around Ichigo, never touching him or her. Rukia knows instantly what it is.

"Oh?" Halibel says with interest, and Rukia struggles to keep her head up.

_This is the hollow power he has been trying to hide from me? It's so massive!_

"Ichigo…" Rukia says in a very uncertain voice.

_Is he still here, or has the hollow taken over like in his fight against ni-sama?_

Rukia has known for a long time. She has no doubts in her mind that Ichigo's hollow condition exists solely because of her.

Her brother had wanted her to stay away from Ichigo and had given her a detailed account of what had happened during their fight in Soul Society.

Rukia had successfully convinced Byakuya that it was unwise to make Ichigo an outcast based on his hollow transformation. She had believed that if she stayed near him, he would be able to have better control over his powers. She has always been willing to die at the hands of Ichigo's hollow to test her theory too.

It had seemed like her hypothesis was correct when she had returned and he had regained his will to be a Shinigami, and Rukia was willing to do whatever was necessary to make sure that his hollow never took over.

She has always had the gut feeling that distancing herself from him would have a bad effect on his soul. They made a pact, the day she put her sword into his heart, and it will stand in her heart until she no longer exists…but now she can feel the jagged and fierce reiatsu of a hollow burning out of Ichigo's magnificent bankai form.

Ichigo wants desperately to turn around to check on Rukia, but if she has that same look of repulsion that Inoue gave when she saw the mask, he's not sure he can handle it. He knows it's all out in the open now, even though that thought scares the living shit out of him.

For now, he just stands in front of Rukia, with his back to her as he glares hatefully at Halibel. He knows that even his voice will have a hollow sounding effect to it, and so Ichigo doesn't say anything at all.

_I will definitely protect you, Rukia! No matter what._

"So you're the one who fought Grimmjow." Halibel says with the excitement in her voice showing. She charges at Ichigo who immediately moves to cross swords with her. Ichigo stays protectively in front of Rukia who is still quite unable to move due to the two of them and the amount of reiatsu that they're exuding.

Halibel flashes out of Ichigo's view for an instant and he realizes exactly what she's up to when he senses her reiatsu flying at Rukia again.

"Rukia!" Ichigo calls it out involuntarily with his hollow sounding voice, even as he zooms in and grabs her up in one arm, and safely out of the way of the attack Halibel had been about to lay on her.

He had no choice but to meet her eyes as he turned to save her, and though she was wearing a rather shocked expression, there was absolutely no revulsion on her face when he looked at her, looking at him.

He's surprised to feel her shaking, in relief or fear he doesn't know, in the safety of his arm against his body. He's grateful that she's as light as a feather.

"It's really you…Ichigo." Rukia's relieved voice is very quiet, but Ichigo hears her. She wraps her arms around his body tightly, and he grins underneath his mask. He feels so very powerful right now.

"Yeah Rukia. It's really me. I'm sorry to have to do this to you for a second time, but I need to concentrate on this fucking bitch trying to kill you." Ichigo tells her before his head looks up to find Renji's position.

"What?" Rukia asks him in confusion as Ichigo yanks her away from his body.

"Renji! Catch!" Ichigo shouts out as he lobs Rukia up into the air at Renji. Rukia screams the whole way. When she lands in Renji's arms, she takes a deep breath.

"Damn it! Quit doing that, you fucking lunatic!" Rukia shrieks at the top of her lungs, causing Ichigo to grin under his mask again.

"Renji! Get her away from here! You get out of here too, the reiatsu will get to be too much for you too! You get her to safety, and you die before you let anything happen to her!" Ichigo roars at Renji, who gives him a determined look before he nods.

"What the hell? This feels exactly like what happened at Soukyoku!" Rukia says in an annoyed voice as she looks up at Renji.

"Don't blame me, Ichigo made me do it because he can't let you die." Renji says as he cuts through a few small fry hollow.

"Damn it, I'm not powerless now! Put me down!" Rukia snaps at Renji, highly pissed off since she can certainly move now.

Renji decides to heed her orders since it's obvious she can move and will probably start to inflict pain on him, if he doesn't do as she says.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Renji asks Rukia with concern as they fly at a couple of hollows. Rukia gives him an angry sideways look.

"I'm fine. Don't worry, I'll settle things with Ichigo later. Just pay attention to the fight!" Rukia yells at Renji as she cuts through a couple of hollow. Renji nods his head obediently.

Ichigo grumbles at the way Halibel disappeared before he could finish her off. He dissolves the hollow mask and starts fighting his way towards Rukia again. He can still remember how relieved he felt when he realized she wasn't terrified of him when he had donned his mask.

_I can always count on Rukia. I should have always known she wouldn't be like anybody else. She knew about my inner hollow before I ever even said a word to her. Why do I always doubt her?_

When Ichigo finally catches up with Rukia, she's in the midst of battle with Renji, taking on a horde of hollow that seem to be attempting a group attack on the two. Ichigo grins as they take care of the horde in record time, and he freezes when Rukia suddenly gazes at him, since she easily sensed him nearby. She uses shunpo to reach his side.

"If you ever toss me around like a football again, I will make you pay." Rukia informs him in a seething voice.

"I'm sorry, Rukia." Ichigo tells her, since he is well aware that she dislikes it when he tosses her like that. Rukia immediately appears to be inspecting him all over to ensure he's okay.

"Don't let it happen again." Rukia grumbles at him before she turns around to kill a hollow that was attempting to stalk them.

"Thank you…Rukia." Ichigo says in a bare whisper.

Rukia doesn't hear him and she jumps at another hollow that was getting to close to them.

Ichigo jumps at some hollow who have appeared too, and he has a blazing smile on his face.

_She accepts me…no matter what._


	63. As Requested: Inheritance 3

**A/N- I was requested to do a third part to Inheritance, and as you all know, it's one of my own favorite stories since I want it to actually happen in Bleach, that Ichigo gets to inherit the royal throne with Rukia of course! This is dedicated to the one who requested it, please enjoy!**

_Inheritance 3_

Rukia and Ichigo arrive in Soul Society and quickly hurry to the Senkai Gate since their purpose this time is not to visit anybody in Soul Society. They know everybody probably saw them arrive, but they don't worry about that as they head to the living world to visit their friends.

It ends up being kind of a bad idea since not one of their friends has the spiritual power to be able to do anything other than lay on their faces when the couple approaches them.

"Hi!" Inoue had said brightly into the pavement. Ichigo and Rukia had exchanged nervous glances.

"Inoue…can you stand?" Rukia asks her softly even as she tries to seal away as much of her power as she possibly can.

"I can't move at all." Inoue tells Rukia, cheerfully into the pavement.

"We really wanted to visit you, but this is kind of uncomfortable." Rukia tells Inoue as they back away.

It's kind of depressing when Ishida and Sado have the same reactions to their increased reiatsu.

"Damn. None of our friends can even sit in our presence?" Ichigo had looked a bit nervous at that.

"What about your family?" Rukia asks Ichigo nervously.

"We should at least go say hi, and leave if they're affected the same way." Ichigo tells Rukia as they shunpo to his house.

"Ichigo!" Isshin's voice sounds loudly as they arrive on the porch and Ichigo watches as his father flings open the front door.

"Yo." Ichigo tells his father with a grin. His father doesn't fall to his face like everyone else thus far has done.

"You and Rukia-chan came for a visit?" Isshin says jovially.

"We wanted to see how everyone was doing, but none of our friends can even rise to their knees in our presence." Ichigo admits with a disappointed look on his face. Isshin doesn't seem too surprised at this information.

"That's to be expected. How is your mother?" Isshin asks Ichigo who smiles at his dad.

Karin and Yuzu run into the room, and Karin's eyes widen at Ichigo's different looking robes.

"Hi Karin, Yuzu." Ichigo says to both of them as Rukia smiles hugely at his side.

"You look different now that you're the King, Ichi-ni." Karin says with wide eyes.

"I can see you!" Yuzu says with a happy smile, and Ichigo is actually surprised that neither of his sisters seem to be that outrageously affected by his and Rukia's reiatsu.

"She has begun to see far more since your wedding," Karin admits to Ichigo who looks at his sisters in concern.

"Have any hollows come after you?" Ichigo asks with worry.

"Only weak ones that we kill ourselves." Karin informs him as she pounds one fist into her other hand.

"I have my own Shinigami powers back now, the girls won't be getting hurt." Isshin assures his son.

"I'm surprised neither of them are affected by the level of our spiritual power." Ichigo says with a bit of amazement.

"They are royalty too," Isshin says with a strange look at his son. "They're going to become very powerful Shinigami themselves." Isshin reminds Ichigo.

"I just figured our friends had more reiatsu than either of them at this point, and that's why I'm so surprised." Ichigo explains to his father.

"Is Mom doing good?" Yuzu asks Ichigo softly. Ichigo smiles warmly at her.

"Yes, she told me to tell you both that she misses you when I told her we were coming to visit." Ichigo tells his sisters.

"Why doesn't she visit?" Karin asks curiously.

"She can't leave the Royal Dimension since she is the Captain of Squad Zero." Ichigo explains to his sisters. She protects the dimension whether or not we're there." Ichigo tells his sisters with a grin.

"Will we ever see her again?" Yuzu asks tearfully.

"When you do go to Soul Society, I'll take you to visit the Royal Dimension, I promise." Ichigo tells his sisters, solemnly.

"You'll stay for dinner, won't you?" Yuzu asks excitedly.

"Of course. I've missed your cooking, even though I get to eat Mom's again." Ichigo tells her with a grin.

"Is it really different from Mom's?" Yuzu asks in surprise.

"Not all that different. Your dinners are equally delicious though," Rukia tells Yuzu with a grin.

Ichigo and Rukia spend all evening with his family enjoying the dinner and family time that they've missed since before the fight with Aizen started. It feels exactly like old times as they all sit, laugh, and smile at the dinner table.

Yuzu's eyes tear up when Ichigo and Rukia announce that they have to head back. Ichigo hugs both of his sisters.

"Make sure you take care of yourselves." Ichigo tells them with a grin.

"We'll try to visit you again." Rukia says with a grin as they head out the front door.

The family watches as Rukia pulls her zanpakutou from her sheath and starts the motions to open the gate that leads back to Soul Society, but before she can open it, they feel a strong hollow reiatsu developing and Ichigo stops Rukia from opening the gate.

Everyone watches as a Vasto Lorde appears in front of them and laughs as he notes the royal robes that Ichigo and Rukia are wearing.

"I knew I felt an amazing reiatsu, and when I devour you, I'll gain all of the power that I could ever want!" The Vasto Lorde says, causing both Rukia and Ichigo to stop attempting to seal their spiritual powers.

"What?" Ichigo says as he yanks Zangetsu off of his back. The world starts to rumble at Ichigo's power and reaction, and the Vasto Lorde drops to his knees, unable to move.

"What in the hell are you?" The Vasto Lorde asks fearfully as Ichigo advances on him.

"I'm the man that's going to kill you." Ichigo informs the Vasto Lorde as he aims Zangetsu at the pitiful creature.

"Getsuga Tenshou." Ichigo whispers and a blast like no other that he's let loose flies out of his zanpakutou. The Vasto Lorde is cut in half and the slash attack continues so far that they can't see the end of it.

"Holy shit!" Karin breathes at the sight of her brother's vast power.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says in a high voice as she surveys the extensive damage done to the living world with his attack.

"Whoops." Ichigo says in an embarrassed voice.

"What the hell?" Rukia asks him as she stares at the slash in the ground that seems to go on forever.

"I didn't hit him with all of my power," Ichigo says defensively. Rukia's eyes widen.

_If his power is like that, then what is my power like now?_

"You two had better go back, your power is far too great for the living world now," Isshin says as he stares at the attack his son had sent towards the Vasto Lorde.

Ichigo and Rukia nod before Rukia opens the gate to Soul Society successfully this time and with no interruptions.

When they arrive back in Soul Society, the Captain Commander is waiting expectantly for them at the gate.

"Welcome back, Sire." all of the Shinigami who aren't captains or lieutenants are all on their faces on the floor since Rukia and Ichigo are exuding their maximum spiritual power at the moment.

"Yo." Ichigo says as he stares at the Captain Commander.

"We can help to seal your power a bit, the next time you want to visit the living world," The Captain informs Ichigo who nods sheepishly.

"That might be necessary." Ichigo says as he remembers the cheerful way that Inoue had greeted them with her face in the pavement.

"The law that you wanted us to make has also been put into effect in Soul Society." The Captain Commander informs him. Rukia looks at Ichigo blankly.

"Good. I am glad to hear it." Ichigo says loudly with a relieved nod of his head.

"What law?" Rukia asks in confusion.

"From now on, whenever the King and Queen are behind closed doors in any room in Soul Society, people must knock and gain permission to enter before they walk in on you." The Captain Commander informs her, causing Rukia to turn bright red.

"Ichigo!" Rukia hisses in embarrassment. Ichigo scoffs without feeling any embarrassment.

"Blame your brother for that one." Ichigo tells her tersely. Rukia can't stop blushing after being informed of that.

"We have a few people to visit before we head back to the Royal Dimension." Rukia tells the Captain Commander. He bows to them and Rukia and Ichigo shunpo to go visit the regular people whenever they're in Soul Society.

Renji, Kenpachi, Ukitake, and the Shibas are all on the list of people to visit. It ends up taking much longer than anticipated. Everyone is welcoming and friendly. Rukia and Ichigo both end up being roped into eating a second dinner at the Shiba household.

Rukia wants to visit her brother, but Ichigo doesn't think that's such a good idea since the law was recently made, but Rukia insists.

Byakuya ends up being a lot more hospitable this time around, even though they don't eat any meals with him.

"Are you happy?" Byakuya had asked before they'd left his home.

"Oh yes, ni-sama!" Rukia had replied with a big smile.

"As long as you're happy." Byakuya had whispered as she and her husband had walked back to Soukyoku Hill.

"Rukia." Ichigo says as he takes her hand and they walk the path into the Royal Dimension.

"Yes, Ichigo?" Rukia asks him softly.

"I want you." Ichigo whispers into her ear. They've gone all day without making love, and now he's aching to do so.

"I'll take care of you, don't worry." Rukia assures him as they enter their own dimension.

"Damn I love you." Ichigo mutters as they shunpo to get to their royal bed as quickly as possible. He doesn't see Rukia's big and happy smile of love and contentment as they head there.

_I'll always take care of you, Ichigo._


	64. As Requested: Revelation Of Love 2

**A/N- This was a request, and believe me I had a hard time coming up with a part two for it, but I'm happy with how it turned out. As always, this is dedicated to the one who requested it. That goes for ALL requests, since I know I do not always make that announcement. :D**

_Revelation of Love 2_

"Doesn't it bother you that I'm the reincarnation of Shiba Kaien?" Ichigo asks Rukia.

Rukia stares at the man who she admitted her love to the night before, the man who she happily gave her virginity to, and she shakes her head no.

"I think it was meant to be. After all, if you hadn't resembled him so much, I probably wouldn't have decided to give you my powers." Rukia tells him in a soft voice. "You know how precious a Shinigami's own powers are to them, now that you have your own." Rukia whispers, and Ichigo nods.

"If you hadn't done that, Aizen's treachery may have never been discovered." Ichigo tells her as he contemplates everything from beginning to end.

"True. He probably would have come after me on his own once he realized I had the hougyoku." Rukia says with a shudder. She harbors no delusions on that score. If Aizen had attacked her, she would have certainly died, just like Kaien-dono and Miyako-dono.

"To be completely honest, it does bother me a little bit that I look so much like your former lieutenant. It makes me wonder how many people see me when they look at me versus seeing him." Ichigo tells Rukia in a quiet voice.

Their extremely serious conversation is cut short when Isshin busts into the room, prepared to attack his son, until he sees his son is holding Rukia tight in his arms.

"Ichigo…Rukia-chan!?" Isshin says in shock, since the last thing he'd expected to see was the two of them in bed together. Ichigo turns bright red.

"Get out of my room right now!" Ichigo bellows at his father, causing Rukia to cringe at the loudness of his voice near her ears.

"I don't believe it. Has hell frozen over? You finally admitted to Rukia-chan that you love her and can't live without her?" Isshin asks in amazement, ignoring Ichigo's orders. Ichigo grabs up his alarm clock and whips it at his father's head. Isshin just barely dodges it, and Ichigo picks up the lamp next. Isshin runs out of the room before Ichigo can throw it though.

"Damn he's annoying." Ichigo grumbles as he sets the lamp back down. They can hear Isshin in the hallway screaming to his daughters.

"Your brother has finally admitted his love to Rukia-chan! We're going to party tonight to celebrate!" Isshin yells to the girls, causing Rukia to giggle and Ichigo to roll his eyes.

"Your father always makes me laugh," Rukia admits, as she giggles still to Ichigo. His eyes narrow at her.

"What do you think he would have to say if he knew that I was the reincarnation of a lieutenant from Soul Society?" Ichigo asks her softly.

"I don't know." Rukia answers. Sometimes Ichigo's father strikes her as a complete moron, and other times he seems like he's putting on a stupid act, and she wonders if he harbors some kind of huge secret.

"We should probably get dressed before the old man bursts in here again," Ichigo tells Rukia with a bit of disappointment in his eyes.

Rukia smiles and nods before she hops out of bed with the blanket wrapped around her, and she looks down with a pleased expression at his exposed naked body.

Ichigo blushes and immediately yanks the pillow down over his private parts. He had been a bit turned on before his father had entered the room, but once he'd shown his face, Ichigo's reaction was to shrivel to his smallest state, and that's not how he wants Rukia remembering him.

He watches as Rukia makes her way to the closet and drops the blanket revealing her nude backside for a split moment before she hops into the closet and shuts the door to change.

It's strange for Ichigo, since their relationship had been the same for so long, to know that he's kissed and made love to the woman he's admired but only kept as a friend for too damned long. He stares at the closed closet door for a moment later before he pops out of bed to change quickly before she comes back out. He has no doubts that she'll give him no warning when she does come out either.

When they finally make their way downstairs, Ichigo is surprised to find that only his father is home, and is sitting on the couch as they come down the stairs.

"Ichigo, Rukia, we need to have a talk." Isshin tells them causing them both to blush again. They nervously walk over to where Isshin is sitting and they perch on the chairs opposite of the couch.

"What is it Dad?" Ichigo asks, still a bit pink.

"I hope you two are in a serious relationship…" Isshin starts out, causing his son and Rukia to blush even harder.

"Yes…we are." Ichigo answers, not meeting his father's eyes. His father lets out a breath of relief.

"Thank goodness! Do you mind telling me what finally made you see the light?" Isshin asks curiously. Ichigo's face darkens.

"I'm not sure you would understand, even if I did tell you," Ichigo answers honestly.

"You might be surprised…why don't you try me?" Isshin asks his son.

"I am not from this world. I'm actually from Soul Society, the world of death life. I belong to the Thirteen Court Guardian Squads. I belong to one of the most noble families in Soul Society, and I'm part of the Thirteenth Division within the Court of Pure Souls." Rukia starts out, and she's surprised when Isshin doesn't look all that surprised, he simply nods his head.

"Please continue." Isshin tells her. Ichigo's mouth drops open that his father isn't already asking a zillion questions based on what Rukia has said thus far.

"When I first joined the Thirteenth Division, I was not nearly as strong as the other Shinigami. My training, my learning, and my feeling accepted were all brought on by the former Thirteenth Division Lieutenant." Rukia continues, and Isshin nods his head again.

"I see…" Isshin says as he waits for Rukia to continue.

"That man's name was Shiba Kaien." Rukia says, and finally Isshin's mouth drops open.

"Shiba Kaien?" Isshin asks her with wonder. Rukia's eyes narrow.

"Do you know him?" Rukia asks him suspiciously. Isshin shakes his head no.

"I do not know who he was, but I do know that last name." Isshin admits in a strange voice as he looks at the kids in wonder.

"You know the Shiba name? They used to be one of the most noble families in Soul Society too!" Rukia says in amazement.

"Finish what you were saying..." Isshin says with wide eyes.

"We learned Ichigo is the reincarnation of Kaien, and when we learned that, Ichigo wanted to know whether or not I looked at him for him or for Kaien, to which I admitted that I loved only him. He admitted the same, and that's how we're together now." Rukia explains fairly quickly, wanting to question Isshin further.

"There's something that I never told you kids." Isshin tells Ichigo suddenly, and Ichigo's gaze shoots to his father instantly.

"What?" Ichigo asks his father. Isshin closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.

"When I married Masaki, she didn't take my given name, I took on hers." Isshin tells them softly, causing Ichigo's mouth to fall open.

"What?" Ichigo asks in shock.

"Her parents were killed by hollows, and when I fell in love with her, I needed to drop my name so that I could raise a family with Masaki. Particularly since I was formerly a part of Squad Zero." Isshin whispers, causing Rukia's eyes to pop out of her head.

"Squad Zero…you mean the royal division?" Rukia whispers in shock.

"Yes. My former last name was Shiba." Isshin tells them in a low voice, causing both Rukia and Ichigo's mouths to fall open in shock.

"I don't believe it." Ichigo whispers, and even Rukia is shocked.

"How did that happen?" Rukia finally asks Isshin.

"I was sent into the living world to kill a Vasto Lorde that had its sights set upon a human whose spiritual power was very similar to Ichigo's. I killed the Vasto Lorde, and saved the life of the determined human, but I fell in love with her. I decided to stay here then." Isshin tells them in a small voice.

"Can't you get into big trouble for that?" Rukia asks in shock.

"I could…which is why I would prefer it if the two of you don't repeat this story." Isshin tells them in a tired voice. "I'll face the music after I've raised my daughters." Isshin declares in a stronger voice.

"Wait a minute…if you're a Shiba, then what was your relationship to Kaien?" Ichigo asks his father with curiosity.

"I'm not sure. He could be my nephew, or a cousin, as far as I know, I only had children with Masaki. Even though there was one Shinigami woman that I did sleep with, I was sent to the royal division shortly thereafter, but I was never contacted to be informed that I had a son." Isshin answers candidly.

"This just keeps getting more and more fucked up." Ichigo grumbles at his father. "So we really are related to the Shiba clan?" Ichigo says in a tight voice. He hasn't noticed Rukia carefully studying his father.

"Your father is clearly a Shiba when you look closely at him." Rukia finally says with a bit of shock. "Why didn't I ever notice it before?" Rukia asks in wonder.

"You weren't looking for it," Isshin tells her with a grin. He can hardly believe his son is the reincarnation of a former Shiba.

"What will happen to you when the royal division does find out?" Ichigo asks his father worriedly.

"Either I'll be forgiven, or I'll be punished." Isshin answers bluntly.

"Oh, that's reassuring!" Ichigo tells him sarcastically. "What am I supposed to tell Karin and Yuzu if you get punished?" Ichigo demands.

"You tell them that their father loved them enough to stay with them rather than abandon them until they were grown." Isshin tells his son in a stern voice.

"You know what? This is too many revelations in under twenty-four hours." Ichigo tells Rukia with a nervous tone in his voice. Rukia nods understandingly.

"I appreciate you sharing that with us," Rukia tells Isshin softly. Isshin smiles at her.

"I appreciate you sharing with me first, and I'm glad my idiot son has finally come to his senses when it comes to you." Isshin tells her, causing Ichigo to jump to his feet angrily, and punch his dad in the face.

Ichigo grabs Rukia's hand and pulls her out of the house.

"Come on Rukia, I need a break from the insanity." Ichigo grumbles as they head out the door.

Rukia smiles. Even with all of the recent revelations, she's gained the one most important thing…Ichigo's love.

**A/N-I'm in such a good mood after completing my long story that later tonight I may get out another chapter in this story as well, so don't be surprised if another request appears tonight. I have happy fingers, but I have to go see my father for fathers day, so I can't be one hundred percent sure that I'll get another up...but I'm going to try!**

**If you haven't read my long story, I'm SO SO SO proud of it, and I would love it if you would check it out and let me know how you like it, I'll warn you that it's a lot of reading, but it's my VERY BEST WORK!**

**Much Love to all of my loyal readers, **

**Theresa Crane:D**


	65. As Requested: Only One

**A/N-I had a request to do another Ichigo/Rukia/Inoue story, so here it is. As always the story is dedicated to the one who requested it! Please enjoy!**

_Only One_

Inoue sighs heavily, as she remembers the way Kurosaki-kun came to save her in Hueco Mundo.

_He came to save me, just like he went to save Kuchiki-san. Maybe I should tell him now how I really feel. I wonder if when he realized I was missing if he got as heartbroken as he seemed when Kuchiki-san disappeared._

"If I tell him, he might respond positively. I've never seen him kiss Kuchiki-san." Inoue says out loud to herself, in an apparent attempt to convince herself that telling him would have beneficial results for her.

_They could just be friends. Maybe I'm reading too much into the way he pays attention to her and looks at her._

Inoue has always noticed. It's never escaped her how Kurosaki-kun's attention is usually on the black haired, petite Shinigami that stormed into his life and changed everything for the better. The way he looks at Kuchiki-san when she's hurt is totally different from the way he looks at his other friends, or even herself.

That is what's always stopped her. Deep in her heart, she believes Kurosaki-kun has feelings for Kuchiki-san, despite what he might say when actually confronted. She may love him, but she would never want him to be with her if he had another woman in his heart.

Inoue knows she loves Kurosaki-kun, but she wants him to love her too, and see that she's special too, not to be pining away for Kuchiki-san while he's with her…not that she's sure he'd ever be with her.

_He smiles for her more than anyone…but what if they are just friends?_

Inoue takes a deep breath. She's decided. She'll tell Kurosaki-kun her feelings. She wonders what the best way to tell him would be. She's not even sure she can get him alone for a private conversation, which is what she's sure she'd need to get out such an embarrassing confession.

_A love letter? No…I wouldn't want anybody else to accidentally see. Not on the phone…it has to be in person._

Inoue wonders if it's selfish of her to share her feelings with him, even though she highly suspects that his heart lies elsewhere, but selfish or not, she's made up her mind.

Inoue decides to go for a walk to figure out exactly how she'll confess her feelings to the man of her dreams.

_Meanwhile…_

"Ichigo…" Rukia's voice trails off as she stares at him. She has a question that she's been longing to ask, but she's worried too many of her own feelings will be obvious if she does ask it. She looks at him helplessly as she realizes she can't ask it.

Ichigo looks at Rukia, who just said his name in a very unusual tone of voice. He can tell something is on her mind, but as he watches her face, it's apparent that she's not exactly willing to share what is on her mind. Ichigo has a feeling it's important though.

"What's wrong, Rukia?" Ichigo asks her as she now has one hundred percent of his attention.

"It's nothing. I'm going to go for a walk." Rukia says with a heavy sigh, before she hops out of the window. Ichigo shoots the spot she was just standing with a strange look.

"I'd better go after her and find out what's bugging her. It looked big." Ichigo mutters before he jumps out the window and starts following her reiatsu. She's not in sight, but he's sure that if he hurries, he can catch up to her within a minute or two.

Rukia is walking at a fast pace as she beats herself up mentally.

_Have I lost my mind? Am I insane? How could I even consider asking Ichigo if saving Inoue was as important in his heart as saving me was? I didn't see what he was like when I was taken away. I'm sure he was just as upset, if not more upset when that happened. Why does it matter so much to me anyways?_

Rukia's throat feels tight as she feels guilty for wondering even one second about Ichigo's intentions. She can never let him know she had that kind of insecurity. She knows he's important to her, and that should be enough.

"I'm such a fool." Rukia mutters as she continues along.

Rukia keeps walking at a very fast pace, never even realizing that Ichigo had left to follow her, only to get held up by the only other girl he'd left the living world to save.

Inoue can hardly believe her luck when she actually spots Kurosaki-kun alone, even if he does appear to be in a hurry.

"Kurosaki-kun!" Inoue calls out, and Ichigo stops to look at her, causing Inoue to smile. He stops and waits for her to catch up to him.

"What's up, Inoue?" Ichigo asks her since she appears to have something important to say to him. "Is it about Rukia?" Ichigo asks instantly, causing Inoue to inwardly frown.

_Not the best way to start out._

"Um, no. I really have something important to say to you." Inoue says in a flustered voice, even as Kurosaki-kun looks anxious to be on his way again. He clearly gives her an impatient look for her to spill out whatever it is as he looks at her.

"Okay, what is it?" Ichigo asks her when she doesn't immediately continue.

"Before I tell you, I want to thank you again for coming to save me in Hueco Mundo. You have no idea how much it meant to me that you came to save me." Inoue tells him softly. Ichigo's eyes soften a tiny bit and Inoue's heart jumps at the sight of it, but his response to her takes away all of her joy.

"Of course I'd come to save you. I'd have come to save Rukia, Sado or Ishida too. You're my friend, and we're all a team." Ichigo tells her in an even voice.

_Boy he sure does know how to suck the romance out of saving a girl._

"Like I said, you have no idea what it meant to me, so I'll explain a little more deeply." Inoue says as she takes a deep breath. "You see, I've been in love with you for a really long time, and ever since I saw you in Hueco Mundo to save me, I feel even deeper in love with you." Inoue whispers, with completely red cheeks.

Ichigo's mouth falls open. Inoue is his friend…but that's all that she is to him, and he's not sure he can even be that with her if she has these kinds of feelings for him, since he has no desire whatsoever to date Inoue.

"Inoue…" Ichigo says in a regretful voice, and Inoue can feel tears popping into her eyes.

"You don't have to answer me right now." Inoue says quickly as she starts to back away, but Ichigo has to tell her now, and so he grabs her arm.

"I do have to answer you now. A heart is something that you can give to only one person, and I think as my friend, you deserve to know my heart belongs to Rukia." Ichigo tells her in a soft voice as he looks her in the eyes to let her know he's very serious.

Inoue can't help it, she starts to cry.

"I thought you might love her…but I couldn't tell for sure, and I thought it was better to tell you than to go crazy from not telling you." Inoue says with hiccups and sniffles interlaced between her words.

"It's not totally obvious that I love her? Even after I learned bankai in three days for her, it still wasn't obvious?" Ichigo asks in shock. He thought his feelings had been so out there that everyone knew he was madly and desperately in love with Rukia. He had no idea that there were even people who doubted his feelings for her.

"It wasn't obvious to me, though I did wonder." Inoue tells him as she wipes away some tears off of her cheeks. More tears fall in their place immediately afterwards.

"You deserve a man who thinks only about you. I'm sorry Inoue, but I'm not that man." Ichigo tells her gently. "You're a very sweet and special girl, but you're not the girl for me." Ichigo continues, even though he feels terrible that she won't stop crying.

"I'm sorry…I really want to be alone right now though." Inoue says, since she can't stop crying.

Ichigo watches helplessly as she turns and runs, but then he remembers that something was bothering Rukia, and he's wasted a lot of time chatting with Inoue about something that could never be.

"Shit!" Ichigo mutters in an aggravated voice.

He turns and runs as fast as he can towards her reiatsu, and he doesn't realize Inoue had turned around only to see him dash in the opposite direction from where she was headed. It's probably best that he never saw the brokenhearted crestfallen look on her face as she watched him run away.

When Ichigo finally finds Rukia, she's staring into a store window with a ton of stuffed rabbits in the window. Ichigo rolls his eyes even as he smiles and he walks over to her.

"Yo." Ichigo says in a low voice to her. Rukia spins to her side to see Ichigo looking at her with a hint of a smile on his face, and she can't help but to smile back.

"Hi Ichigo! Aren't they cute?" Rukia asks as she points at the stuffed rabbits.

_Not as cute as you._

"They're lame," Ichigo says, anticipating her reaction. He's not disappointed, her eyes narrow angrily at him as she gives him a long and thorough look.

"They are not lame! They're adorable." Rukia argues even as she tries not to smile at the way he's so blatantly amused with her outburst.

"Want me to buy you one?" Ichigo asks as his cheeks turn a bit pink. Rukia's mouth drops open. He's going to buy her one?

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Rukia says as her eyes light up like a Christmas Tree.

"Alright, come on." Ichigo says as he opens the door to the store. Rukia walks under his arm and brushes past him as she does, and Ichigo grins as he lets her pick out which one she wants to take home. She finally decides on a zebra striped rabbit, and Ichigo rolls his eyes as she chooses it.

"Thank you Ichigo!" Rukia says happily as she hugs the rabbit to her chest as though it's a prized possession. He grins down at her pleased as punch expression and he gives her a smile.

"I want you to remember something." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia looks up at him with a puzzled look in her eyes.

"Remember what?" Rukia asks him with a confused tone.

"That there is only one girl that I'll buy a stuffed animal for, that I'm not related to," Ichigo tells her in a low voice. Rukia's mouth drops open a tiny bit as she realizes what he's telling her.

"Why me?" Rukia asks softly, and Ichigo stops in his tracks.

"I'd expect a question like that to come from anyone else, but not you." Ichigo tells her in a soft voice. Rukia's eyes widen a bit more.

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Rukia asks softly.

"Depends. What do you think I'm saying?" Ichigo asks her with a raised eyebrow.

"You consider me family?" Rukia asks even as she hides her smile. Ichigo shoots her a glare.

"That's not what I'm saying!" Ichigo shouts out, mortified that she might think he considers her a third sister.

"Tell me then. Straight out tell me. I want to hear this come from your very own lips." Rukia tells him as she looks at his eyes and then his lips.

"Rukia…you should know already. You're the only one for me." Ichigo says with a bright red face as he looks up towards the sky.

_Fuck this is embarrassing._

Rukia's radiant smile is completely missed by Ichigo who is still staring at the sky. Rukia hugs her new stuffed rabbit to her chest very tight with her right hand and she reaches over to grab his right hand with her left hand.

Ichigo's eyes widen when he feels Rukia take his hand, and his heart rate quickens into a turbo speed. He finally looks down into her shining eyes, and he can tell she's very happy.

"You're the only one for me too." Rukia whispers, as she squeezes his hand a bit. He squeezes back and lets out a huge sigh of relief.

"I'm glad." Ichigo whispers to her, even as he feels himself blushing again. Rukia's smile is enough to keep him from feeling totally stupid though.

_I've always felt that way, Ichigo. For me, you're the only one._


	66. As Requested: Urahara's Mirrors 5

**A/N-Yep, you guessed it, I had another request to do a continuation to Urahara's Mirrors, but it's not the birth of their third child, but he will be the star in it. His name means: Snow Boy. As always, the story is dedicated to the one who requested a continuation. (they actually requested 2 continuations to this story and I'll be posting the other in the near future)**

_Urahara's Mirrors 5_

"Ichigo, take Yukio out with you while I tend to the twins. They both need baths, and I can't watch him and bathe them at the same time." Rukia tells Ichigo as he's about to head over to Sado's house for a visit.

Ichigo frowns, he hadn't discussed bringing Yukio with him to Sado's house, but he wouldn't dare to argue with Rukia right now. The twins just got over a bad cold, and unlike Rukia, Ichigo had been able to sleep through their nighttime coughing. She'd probably get really pissed if he tried to argue.

"Alright." Ichigo says as he grabs the stroller and other necessary things needed in order to take his son out for a few hours.

"Out?" His two year old son asks with big interested eyes at his father. Ichigo grins at his son.

"Yep, I'm taking you over to Sado's house." Ichigo tells his son with a big grin as he gathers the final items necessary to leave with his son.

"Sado?" His son repeats loudly. His son is in the habit of repeating everything he hears right now, which is why Ichigo has had to refrain from swearing in front of his son. There's nothing worse than nasty looks from strangers when his son starts belting out the word _shit_.

"Yep." Ichigo tells his son as he sets him into the stroller. Ichigo goes to find Rukia and say goodbye to her and the twins before he takes Yukio out. He grins because the twins are both in the tub already with toys floating around them as Rukia lathers up their hair.

"You're leaving?" Rukia asks Ichigo as she notices he's entered the bathroom. Ichigo nods.

"Yes. I won't be gone too long. I'll see all of you later," Ichigo tells the twins and his wife. Rukia tilts her face up and Ichigo bends down to kiss her.

"Alright, I'll see you when you get back." Rukia tells him as her attention focuses back to the twins.

"Love you." Ichigo tells her with a happy smile. Rukia turns her head around and smiles back at him.

"I love you too." Rukia tells him.

When Ichigo arrives at Sado's house with Yukio, Sado is pleasantly surprised and he's glad Ichigo brought his youngest son with him.

"That is one cute kid." Sado says as he takes Yukio out of the stroller and holds him high in the air. Yukio grins at Sado.

"Cute kid?" Yukio asks, and Sado nods with a smile.

"Very cute." Sado tells him as he spins him around in a circle, holding him high in the air. Ichigo can't help but smile when he hears his son's joyful laugh. Just like Rukia, his kids all like being in high places.

"Sorry, I didn't know I was going to have to bring him." Ichigo apologizes, but Sado shakes his head.

"I love your kids. They're like my honorary niece and nephews." Sado tells Ichigo as he twirls Yukio around again.

"I'm glad you're not annoyed. Rukia's really exhausted since she could barely sleep when the twins got a cold. They only just got over it yesterday." Ichigo explains, as Sado keeps spinning his son around.

"You can bring any of the kids, anytime you come over here. It's fun to play with them, since I don't have any of my own." Sado tells Ichigo with a bit of a depressed look.

"You'll find the right girl." Ichigo assures him, and Sado grins.

"I just wasn't lucky enough to have her land in my bedroom when I was fifteen." Sado says with a chuckle, and Ichigo can feel his face warming up.

"You're not old yet. You're only twenty-one." Ichigo tells Sado with an encouraging tone.

"I know. I shouldn't give up hope yet." Sado says as he lifts Yukio high in the air, and then lowers him close to the ground, only to raise him back into the air again.

After Sado plays with with his son for close to an hour, Ichigo sets Yukio back in his stroller, only to have the kid fall dead asleep from all of the excitement.

Ichigo and Sado hang out for close to two more hours, before Ichigo starts gathering his things to walk Yukio back home in the stroller.

"It was fun, bring the twins over next time." Sado says as Ichigo pushes his youngest son out the door.

"Sure." Ichigo tells Sado as they head home.

Everything goes just fine, until Ichigo is halfway home. Ichigo can feel a tremendous spirit force materializing, and when he sees the human sized hollow appear with the amazing reiatsu to go along with it, Ichigo realizes he is going to have to fight, with his son present.

Ichigo has no idea that the reiatsu woke his son up. Ichigo pops out of his body to confront the obvious Vasto Lorde who is eyeing Yukio hungrily. When he sees Ichigo switch into his Shinigami form though, his eyes look even more hungry.

"A Shinigami and his son? I can't believe it, this is my lucky day!" The Vasto Lorde says excitedly, causing Ichigo to get really worried. He can't let any hollow target his kid.

Suddenly Ichigo understands completely, why his mother did what she did for him, because Ichigo will happily die if it means his son can live.

"You won't touch my son." Ichigo tells the Vasto Lorde in a deadly serious voice before he gathers all of his strength to fight for his child. He has no idea that his son is watching the scene avidly.

"This won't even take that long," the Vasto Lorde says as he licks his lips hungrily.

"Bankai!" Ichigo says with all of his resolve. "Tensa Zangetsu." Ichigo says very quietly as he transforms in front of his son's eyes. Yukio's eyes are as wide as saucers. This is the first time he's seen his father in Shingami form.

Ichigo swoops in at high speed to slash the Vasto Lorde up, but the Vasto Lorde aims a cero right towards his son right after Ichigo slashes him a few times and Ichigo is forced to pull on the mask to deflect the cero from killing his son. It pisses him off so much that he decapitates the Vasto Lorde in one stroke.

Ichigo's love for his son, is what makes him able to finish off the Vasto Lorde, without even a scratch, even if his heart did thump in terror the entire time.

Ichigo is so relieved as he gets back into his body, that he is totally unaware that his son saw the whole thing. The rest of the walk back home is uneventful, and when Ichigo walks in the door, he finds Rukia sitting on the couch while the twins are playing on the floor with a few toys.

Rukia looks up and smiles at him in relief.

"I'm so glad you got home okay, I thought I sensed a powerful…you know…a little while ago." Rukia says in a low voice with a meaningful glance at Ichigo. They try not to talk about Hollows in front of the kids.

"We're just fine." Ichigo assures her with a smile as he pushes Yukio in. He pulls Yukio out of the stroller, sets him down, and his youngest son runs over to his mother with a big fat smile.

"Bankai!" Yukio shouts out energetically. All of the blood drains from Ichigo's face as Rukia's eyes pop out of her head. She gives Ichigo a very dirty look before she looks back at her son and runs her hands through his dark hair before she kisses him.

"I see." Rukia says in a low voice as Ichigo sweats. They had agreed to hold off as long as possible on telling their children about hollows, but apparently his youngest son saw everything.

"I thought he was sleeping…" Ichigo says as he realizes his son saw and heard him in his Shinigami form. Rukia knows now, exactly what happened. She had sensed a powerful hollow and it had been powerful enough to make her husband not only change forms in front of their son, but to go bankai in front of him. Ichigo walks over and leans down to whisper in her ear.

"It was a Vasto Lorde." Ichigo tells her, causing Rukia's eyes to get even bigger. She pulls Yukio into her arms and kisses him about ten times, before she looks at Ichigo with relief.

"I'm glad you're not hurt," Rukia tells him meaningfully.

"Bankai!" Yukio shouts out again jubilantly, causing Rukia to sigh. Urahara's mirrors had never shown her _this_.

"Sorry, Rukia." Ichigo says, feeling like a moron for not at least turning the stroller so that his son couldn't have possibly seen anything. Akio stands up and walks over to his father.

"Why does Yukio keep saying that?" He asks his father. Yukio bounces off of his father's lap and jumps at his older brother.

"Daddy's bankai!" Yukio says in an apparent explanation.

"It's just child jibber jabber." Ichigo says desperately to his older son. Akio seems satisfied before he goes back to play with his sister.

"I'm just thankful you both returned alive," Rukia whispers as Ichigo sits down next to her.

"I'd return back home to you, no matter what it took." Ichigo assures her, and they both roll their eyes at Yukio's response.

"Bankai!" Yukio shouts as though he has a purpose as he sits down and laughs at himself.

Rukia and Ichigo exchange glances. They hope the events of this day soon fade from his memory.

Rukia stares at her youngest son and husband and sighs in relief that they are okay after encountering a Vasto Lorde. She won't be mad as long as they always come home.


	67. Please

**A/N-This one is far more dramatic with romance, than humorous, since it starts out all emotional. I could see it happening though, and so I wrote it out. I'm still working on some requests, but here's one of my own in between. I hope you enjoy it!**

_Please_

Even though the enemy is dead, Ichigo can't feel any joy in it. After all, what had been sacrificed in order to kill the powerful hollow was enough to make Ichigo feel like he was being torn apart from the inside out. Ichigo had gotten completely tied up in the hollow's many tentacles, and the hollow had been about to land the killing blow on him.

Rukia had darted in to take the hit instead, and the fear of seeing her take that hit, gave Ichigo the strength to cut through the hundreds of tentacles that had been able to hold him completely motionless a moment ago. Ichigo had sliced through the hollow's head instantly and then he rushed to Rukia's side.

Blood is pouring out of the center of her chest, and Ichigo feels a horror in his gut unlike any other that he's ever felt. It feels like his head is caving in as blood pours from her wound. Ichigo presses his hands tightly against her chest, in an effort to stop the bleeding, but the blood seeps through his hands, and all around. The bleeding just won't stop.

Rukia's blood, is all over his hands…in more ways than one. Ichigo finally stops staring at the blood and he looks at her face. Her eyes are open, though they look dimmer by the second.

"Rukia! Why did you do that?" Ichigo asks desperately as he stares at her with eyes that let her know his heart is breaking.

Rukia can't speak, she's unable to, due to the severity of the injury. She knows she's on the brink of death, and she can't even talk to the man who's looking at her like she's all that exists in his heart. Rukia struggles to lift her arm, and she's successful in her endeavor. Ichigo's eyes stay horrified as she reaches out to touch him, one last time.

_I want to feel his cheek against my hand. I want to die touching the man I love._

Ichigo leans forward towards her and looks at her desperately.

"You have to hold on, Rukia. You are not allowed to die on me, do you hear me?" Ichigo says even as tears start to spill from his eyes.

Rukia isn't crying though. Even though her eyes are getting even dimmer, she has a very content expression on her face, and when her hand finally reaches its destination, she actually smiles at him, despite the pain she must be in.

Ichigo stares at her, as her hand is touching him, and he can tell.

_This is her farewell_.

"No…damn it Rukia, you are not allowed to die! I need you, without you…" Ichigo can't even make out a complete and total thought, and he rubs his cheek against her hand a little bit as he stares desperately into her eyes.

As long as she's touching him like this, she's still with him. That means that there's still hope.

He lifts one blood soaked hand to cover her hand with his own on his cheek, and he sees her smile grow a tiny bit wider. It's as though he granted her wish when he touched her back in that loving way.

"Don't go…Rukia!" Ichigo says, but her hand starts to go limp in his own, and he can tell the only reason she's still touching him is because his hand is holding hers to his face. "I love you!" Ichigo says as loudly as he can, right up to her ear, before he kisses her lips very gently.

It's no use. There is no response besides more blood pouring out of her body. Ichigo cries freely. He's so lost in his emotions that he never hears Inoue when she approaches.

"What happened to Kuchiki-san?" Inoue asks in horror as she sees Ichigo's back to her, bent over Rukia, who looks like she's in really bad condition.

"Please…you have to save her. She just died, but you have to bring her back." Ichigo tells Inoue in a loud controlled voice even as tears are still falling from his eyes.

It took a lot to stop suddenly sobbing loudly, and he knows it will be obvious what he'd been doing if he turns around and looks at Inoue. He just stares at Rukia's lifeless form. It's a nightmare come true. He's feeling ready to be the horse, because being the king means nothing if his queen is dead.

"Kurosaki-kun…she's dead…" Inoue tells him softly as tears start to fall from her eyes, and Ichigo stops caring that she'll see his tears, snot, and pain. He spins around, and bares his pain openly to her as he stares into her eyes.

"You either save her life or I'm going to be dying right next to her." Ichigo tells Inoue in a soft voice.

He is glad he's not the only one crying over Rukia's current condition. If Rukia can't be saved, he'll lay down next to her and let his inner hollow take complete control. He'll just stop existing.

"What? No you can't Kurosaki-kun!" Inoue says with big wide tear filled eyes.

"I couldn't do anything else." Ichigo says, as more tears pour from his eyes. "I love her too damned much to live without her. If you can't save her, then I'm going to join her." Ichigo tells Inoue before he wipes away some of the mess on his face so that he can give her his most serious look.

Inoue steps forward and calls forth her healing powers. Even if Kurosaki-kun doesn't want to be with her, she wants him to be happy, and alive.

Ichigo's eyes widen hopefully as Rukia's wounds seem to heal, and when he sees her chest start to rise and fall as though she's started breathing, he holds his breath.

Ichigo wipes his face again desperately, but he still can't stop crying at all of the strong emotions that he's feeling so intensely as a result of seeing her die in front of his eyes.

Inoue finally steps away from Rukia and looks at Ichigo.

"She'll wake up any second…I'll leave the two of you alone." Inoue tells Ichigo softly. He nods gratefully at her and he sits next Rukia, and pulls her into his arms. He wants to give her a bear hug when she wakes up. He can feel some fresh tears on his cheeks, and he knows he won't soon forget that moment when she died.

He never once sees the wave of pain on Inoue's face from hearing him voice his feelings for Rukia so clearly to her, and he doesn't look at her as she walks away from the two of them.

When Rukia's eyes flutter open, she's shocked at first, and her hands immediately go to her chest, where her wound was, and then he watches her take in the realization that she's in his arms, completely healed. She suddenly notices that he appears to have been crying pretty damned hard, and that tears are still falling out of his eyes.

"Never again, Rukia. Don't you ever do that to me again." Ichigo mutters at her, before he pulls her in for a big hug. Rukia's eyes widen at that gesture, and she smiles when he doesn't let her go.

He's hugging her so tight, she can't free her arms to hug him back. She rests her head up against his shoulder as he hugs her though, and she thinks that Ichigo must have been pretty damned scared and worried to have such a reaction.

"Never thought I'd see you come so undone," Rukia mumbles at him, but he doesn't stop hugging her.

"I thought I was going to lose you," Ichigo tells her in a shaky whisper. "That could unravel me in moments." Ichigo says in a pained voice, and Rukia realizes he's trembling while he's holding her. She hadn't noticed that before.

"Will you loosen your hold so that I can hug you back?" Rukia asks him softly.

Ichigo squeezes her tighter for a moment more before he loosens his hold enough for her to pull her arms free and put them around him.

"Rukia…" Ichigo whispers desperately as he breathes in the scent of her hair and trembles in relief that she's not still dead on the floor.

"What were you saying to me when I was fading out?" Rukia asks him. She hears Ichigo take a big shaky breath.

"I told you that I love you." Ichigo tells her in a very soft voice as he hugs her in his arms. Rukia lets out a contented sigh.

"What a great day." Rukia breathes as she feels total amazement and wonder at how everything seems perfect right now. She hears Ichigo's guffaw, and she smiles.

"It's only great because you're not dead." Ichigo whispers before he finally pulls away from her to wipe his face completely now that the tears seem to have subsided.

Rukia touches her chest and looks at Ichigo.

"Inoue did this?" Rukia asks him softly. Ichigo nods his head as he feels lightheaded from the toll of his emotions going completely haywire.

"She did a good job." Ichigo tells Rukia, as he is glad there is light in her eyes again.

"You aren't kidding," Rukia says with wonder as she opens and closes her hands and marvels at how she's not dead after she experienced death. It kills her to see Ichigo's face showing so much pain. She never imagined he would shed so many tears for her.

"You aren't allowed to die Rukia, not unless we die together." Ichigo tells her firmly as he gives her a long hard stare.

Rukia feels her heart flutter as she nods her head in agreement.

"Don't worry Ichigo, I'll always be at your side." Rukia whispers, and Ichigo gives her a soft smile that lets her know he likes her words.

"I'll make sure of it." Ichigo promises her before he picks her up to take her home.

"I can walk!" Rukia sputters, but Ichigo shakes his head no.

"It will make me feel better to carry you, Rukia." Ichigo tells her with a little grin. Rukia blushes.

"But-" Rukia starts to protest, but Ichigo cuts her off with one word.

"Please?" He asks her desperately. Rukia can't argue when he looks at her like that. She nods her head and smiles a tiny smile.

_It sure as hell beats walking_.


	68. As Requested: Breaking The News

**A/N-For the purposes of this story, the fact that Isshin is a Shinigami is already known to Rukia and Ichigo, and they know Isshin's aware of their own powers and Rukia's status. This is about Byakuya's reaction to Rukia's delicate condition.**

**This was done by request, and is dedicated to the one who requested it. **

_Breaking The News _

"Dad?" Ichigo says in an uncertain voice. Rukia is standing next to him fidgeting nervously. Isshin looks up at the two of them and smiles the same way he always does, when he sees them together.

"Yes Ichigo?" Isshin says, even as he smiles and looks at Rukia. Ichigo can feel his nerves tightening up.

"I have something to tell you." Ichigo says, even as sweat drips down his face.

"Are you and Rukia-chan finally dating? It's about time, you damned fool!" Isshin says loudly as he looks at the two of them and realizes he's hit the nail on the head.

_They're actually finally together. _

Ichigo swallows nervously. His father has guessed wrong. Well he's right, but that's not what Ichigo was trying to tell him.

"Actually we're a bit past dating, and you can expect to be a grandfather within six or so months." Ichigo says with a red hot face. Isshin's mouth literally drops to the floor.

_Not only are they together, but they're already multiplying? _

Isshin stares wide eyed at his son and at his son's...

"You do plan on marrying, don't you?" Isshin asks, causing Ichigo to sweat even more.

"I can't marry her without her brother's blessing," Ichigo says with a desperate look at his father.

"I'm sure ni-sama will agree to it," Rukia says in a bright and cheerful voice. Next to her, Ichigo looks quite doubtful.

"He's more likely to agree to go bankai on me after learning you're already a third of the way through a pregnancy." Ichigo says as he looks mighty stressed out.

"Rukia-chan?" Isshin says in a sugar sweet honey coated voice. Rukia smiles instantly at him.

"Yes, O-ji-sama?" Rukia replies as she looks questioningly at him.

"Would you mind if I took my son out for some father son time to discuss his news?" Isshin asks her, even as he gives her a big happy wink. Rukia looks a little confused, but she nods her head yes.

"Of course I wouldn't mind." Rukia says even as she wonders what on earth Isshin will have to say to Ichigo, once they're alone.

Rukia gives Ichigo a smile, since she's still not comfortable with kissing him in front of his father. He basically just found out that they are more than friends. Rukia heads up for Ichigo's room, and Isshin gives his son a sympathetic look.

"Is her brother going to be difficult?" Isshin asks, causing Ichigo to frown.

"I can't imagine that her very proper and law abiding proper brother will be okay with the fact that I knocked Rukia up without it being within the confines of marriage." Ichigo says in a tight voice.

"When are you going to tell him?" Isshin asks softly. He can tell his son is totally freaked out.

"As soon as I get up the nerve to." Ichigo answers honestly, causing Isshin to grin.

"I might be able to help you with that. Do you have a way of getting to Soul Society without Rukia's help?" Isshin asks his son. Ichigo slowly nods his head yes.

"Renji is staying at Urahara's. He can open the gate for me if it's necessary." Ichigo replies as he looks at his father with a puzzled expression.

"Alright. I said I'd help you, so lets go." Isshin tells Ichigo.

Isshin makes a pit stop for quite a bit of alcohol and liquor, and he drives his son to a wooded area where they sit on a rock and drink together. Within an hour, Ichigo is feeling the effects of the different kinds of alcohol that his father has generously served him.

Isshin just keeps mixing different alcohols and he calls Ichigo a pussy when he's not drinking fast enough. If anybody were around to see him, they'd certainly vote him the world's worst parent, which is why Isshin picked a desolate place for their drink fest.

After spending about two and a half hours drinking, Isshin gives his son a questioning look.

"How do you feel about talking to Byakuya, now that you've had time to think about it?" Isshin asks with a lifted eyebrow. Ichigo's eyes narrow.

"You know what? I don't know why I'm so concerned about what he thinks anyways, there was a time when he was threatening to execute her with his own hand." Ichigo says with far more determination than what he had before he had imbibed. Isshin notices his son's eyes look a bit distant.

"That's the spirit! You should go tell him now while you have your confidence." Isshin says with an amused smile. It may be really bad advice, but it's bound to make an awesome story later. Isshin pulls out his cell phone and hands it to Ichigo.

"You're right! I won't let him scare me. I'm calling Renji." Ichigo says in a slurred voice as he yanks the phone from his father's hand a little bit more energetically than he actually needed to.

"I wish I could come with you." Isshin says as he tries to hide his huge smile. He can't wait to hear how this all turns out.

"Yo Renji! It's me, Ichigo. Meet me by the riverbank as quickly as your legs can take you there. It's an emergency." Ichigo tells Renji in a very loud voice before he hangs up. He looks at his father, and grins.

"Alright son, I'll see you at home later," Isshin says, and he watches as his son stumbles out of the woods and towards the river.

"Tell Rukia I'll be back home soon," Ichigo says as he stumbles to his knees.

"Lightweight!" Isshin declares as he points at his son and grins.

"Shut up!" Ichigo snarls at his father. "Don't forget to tell Rukia I'll be home soon."

Isshin laughs openly, and Ichigo glares at him.

"I'll tell her." Isshin assures Ichigo.

Ichigo uses his Shinigami substitute license to switch into a Shinigami and his father throws his body over his shoulders to take it home.

Ichigo concentrates on walking normally. There is no way in hell Byakuya will take him seriously if he can't even stand as he asks for permission to marry Rukia.

Ichigo wonders whether or not he should ask for permission before or after announcing that Rukia is pregnant.

Ichigo is so concentrated on his thoughts and his walking normally that he doesn't see when Renji flies down.

Ichigo is getting more and more angry the more he thinks about the possibility of Byakuya telling him he's not worthy to marry Rukia or some shit like that.

"Ichigo." Renji says as he leaps over to stand in front of Ichigo.

"Yo…Renji." Ichigo says in a bit of a growl.

"What's up? What is the emergency? You looked deep in thought." Renji tells Ichigo with a puzzled look.

"I need to you take me to Soul Society," Ichigo says, in a bit of a flustered voice. Renji's eyes widen at Ichigo's inability to speak normally.

"Are you okay? You're messing up your speech." Renji says as he stares intently at Ichigo's face.

"I need to go get Byakuya's blessing to be with Rukia." Ichigo says, slurring a few words. Renji nods his head with wide eyes.

"Right…and you think he'll actually give his blessing?" Renji asks as he stares at Ichigo in an obviously pathetic state.

"I won't let him turn me down." Ichigo says solidly, and he gives Renji a glassy eyed glare.

"Alright, I'll take you." Renji says, smothering a smile.

_Oh I just have to see this_.

Renji pulls out his cell phone and requests a second hell butterfly for Ichigo, and then he opens the gate. Two butterflies fly out and Ichigo stumbles his way through the path to get to Soul Society.

Ichigo gets more and more cocky about his right to marry Rukia, with each step that he takes closer to the Kuchiki mansion, and he never even notices the sideways glances Renji gives him, as he thinks Ichigo is a complete lunatic.

Maybe it's the alcohol, but Ichigo is feeling rather bold and righteous by the time he reaches the Kuchiki mansion with Renji.

A servant answers the door and Renji speaks for the pair.

"We're here to have an emergency meeting with Captain Kuchiki" Renji says with Ichigo giving a firm glassy eyed nod in agreement.

The servant leads them into the foyer, and disappears to inform Kuchiki Byakuya of his surprise visitors.

"He'd better not tell me no." Ichigo grumbles under his breath, as he waits for Rukia's brother to show himself. He sways a little bit as he tries to stand still.

"Are you sure about this?" Renji asks with a raised eyebrow, and he smirks since Ichigo isn't looking at him.

"Of course I'm sure." Ichigo stumbles over his words a bit, and the men wait in silence, until moments later when Byakuya shows his face.

"Um…" Renji says with wide eyes.

"Byakuya! Yo." Ichigo says with a big drunken goofy smile.

"What are you doing here?" Byakuya asks Ichigo, the moment he sees him. Ichigo takes a few steps closer to Byakuya.

"I'm here to talk to you bout something real important." Ichigo says, tripping over a few of his words.

"Then do it when you're sober." Byakuya says and he starts to turn to walk away, but Ichigo dashes over to him and throws his arm around Byakuya and shakes him more than a bit.

Byakuya's eyes widen in shock at being treated so casually. He loses his noble calm a bit as he's being shaken roughly by Ichigo.

Renji guffaws. Never in his life has he seen Kuchiki Byakuya look so rattled.

"Don't be like that…after all this can't wait." Ichigo says with a bit of a chuckle, as he imagines Byakuya's reaction to finding out Rukia is pregnant. "You are going to shit yourself…"

Ichigo is still shaking Byakuya by his shoulder as he speaks. Renji covers his mouth with his hand and coughs in an attempt to hide his laugh. He never imagined that Ichigo would act chummy with Byakuya.

"Remove your hands from my person." Byakuya says in an ultra cold voice.

"Oh Byakuya…have I got some news for you. It's going to rock your world." Ichigo says, as he lets out another little chuckle.

For some reason the entire thing seems completely hilarious to Ichigo now. Ichigo still doesn't let the man go, nor does he stop shaking him. Renji's eyes bulge at the scene.

"Say it and be gone already!" Byakuya snaps angrily, since Ichigo has done nothing but ignore his commands since he set his sight on the kid.

"I've come to get your blessing…to marry Rukia." Ichigo tells Byakuya, and he turns his head to give Byakuya a serious stare. "I won't take no for an answer." Ichigo tells him in a stern yet amused voice. Ichigo shakes Byakuya some more.

"You enter my home uninvited, drunk out of your mind, you put your hands on me, and then you expect me to bless you marrying my sister, are you insane?" Byakuya asks Ichigo in a low voice.

"I've been called that before, but you see, I have always believed that parents should be married before the birth of their child." Ichigo tells Byakuya, and the stoic man's face becomes fully horrified as he stares at Ichigo to discern whether or not he's telling the truth.

"Rukia is pregnant?" Byakuya whispers with wide eyes. Renji's look mirrors Byakuya's since this is the first he's heard about a pregnancy.

Ichigo gives Byakuya a completely drunken smile and he finally drops his arm from Byakuya's shoulder.

Ichigo scratches his head, but he actually looks very proud.

"Yes, she is. She'd be devastated if you didn't give your blessing too." Ichigo says, slurring his words a bit heavily. He blinks and gives Byakuya a big grin.

Byakuya glares at the drunken kid in front of him, and he wonders if he'll even remember this exchange when he wakes up the next day. It's not that he has any real objection to Rukia and Ichigo getting married, but he doesn't really appreciate that Ichigo got completely blitzed before coming to get the blessing.

"If Rukia finds you acceptable then I will give my blessing. In the future, do not come to see me after you've had sake." Byakuya orders Ichigo in a stern voice. He wants to roll his eyes at Ichigo's coarse attitude towards everything.

"You're getting so damned soft…" Ichigo mutters with a grin at Byakuya, who glares back at him in return.

"Holy shit," Renji says under his breath as he can't believe he watched that entire exchange go down without Ichigo getting beaten to a bloody pulp in his inebriated state.

Byakuya sighs as he gives Ichigo a look that says he should get his act together. If he hadn't seen Ichigo's resolve to save Rukia with his own eyes so long ago, he wouldn't think the kid was even half worthy of her, but it's because of Ichigo that Rukia is even still alive.

It had surprised Byakuya that they hadn't become a couple sooner. Ichigo takes a step closer to Byakuya again, and Byakuya takes a hasty step back. Ichigo steps forward again and grabs Byakuya's hand to shake it firmly.

"Thanks for being a good sport, Byakuya," Ichigo says, relieved that Byakuya hadn't given him a more difficult time.

"Leave before I change my mind." Byakuya says since Ichigo is shaking his hand a bit too fast and hard, making Byakuya feel like his arm is made of spaghetti or something.

Ichigo shoots Byakuya another grin before he turns to head out. Renji walks out with him, shaking his head at Ichigo's audacity and impetuousness.

"That went better than I expected," Ichigo says as he stumbles over his feet. Renji laughs and shakes his head at Ichigo again.

"You can say that again. You're nuts…to go and ask for Kuchiki Byakuya's blessing while you're hammered out of your mind," Renji says with a bit of disbelief.

When Ichigo finally makes it home, he's still pretty smashed. When he finds Rukia in his room, he grabs her up and starts to kiss her passionately, and that alerts her to his intoxicated condition.

"If you agree to marry me, we'll have your brother's blessing." Ichigo tells her as he nuzzles her ear. Rukia looks up at him in shock and realizes he's not just a little bit drunk, he's totally wasted.

"Ichigo…you went to see my brother, totally drunk?" Rukia asks in a bare whisper with really wide eyes. Ichigo grins at her with a sparkle in his drunken gaze.

"I just got back." Ichigo tells her, not wanting to actually admit he's had far too much to drink tonight.

"And he agreed to give his blessing?" Rukia asks with total astonishment.

"He said that if you agreed to it, he'd give his blessing." Ichigo tells her as he picks her up and kisses her hard on the lips.

"I can't believe it." Rukia says in wonder after he pulls away from kissing her.

"He knows you're pregnant too." Ichigo tell her. Rukia's face turns completely white.

"You told ni-sama that I'm pregnant?" Rukia asks in a whisper. Ichigo grins at her again and nods.

"You should have seen the look on his face. Totally priceless." Ichigo says with a laugh.

Rukia shakes her head in disbelief. Trust Ichigo to be the only man alive who would drunkenly obtain the blessing for their marriage and announce the future arrival of their child while in that state too.

"You're nuts." Rukia finally says, stupefied that he returned home completely uninjured after doing everything the wrong way.

"And you're going to marry this nut." Ichigo says with a drunken grin. Rukia can't help but smile. Ichigo's never so relaxed and goofy like this.

She thinks drunk Ichigo is ultra cute, and now she wants him to take her to the bed. She lets out a happy sigh.

"Thank you, Ichigo." Rukia says before she points at the bed. Ichigo understands completely and manages to get her into bed without dropping her on her head or falling down.

_The Next Morning…_

"Damn my head hurts…what happened?" Ichigo asks as he looks around the room. He realizes Rukia is naked in bed with him, and that's comforting enough, but he gets the feeling that something important happened the night before, and he can't remember what it is.

Ichigo's father busts into the room.

"There's trouble." Isshin yelps, and both Rukia and Ichigo give each other confused glances.

Isshin leaves the room so that they can get out of bed to get dressed, and when Ichigo and Rukia head downstairs, they're shocked to see Byakuya in the residence.

"Your wedding will be next week." Byakuya announces in a hard voice. He watches as the blood drains from Ichigo's face. Byakuya gets annoyed with the next thought that runs through his head, due to it being so uncouth.

_It looks like he's the one who wants to shit himself._

"Wha…what?" Ichigo asks in confusion as the blood drains from his face.

"It's not like you two can take your time now that Rukia's expecting." Byakuya says with a small glare at Ichigo.

"You told him?" Ichigo squeaks at Rukia. She rolls her eyes and glares at him fully in the eyes. Ichigo's a bit taken aback by the intensity of her stare. She's looking at him like he's a dolt.

"No…you told him. Last night." Rukia informs Ichigo as though he's a nincompoop.

"Last night…?" Ichigo echoes in confusion.

"Ah yes, when you showed up at the mansion, without any prior notice to announce to me that you wanted my blessing." Byakuya tells Ichigo with a near sneer.

Ichigo wants to die. He thought that was a dream. Did he really shake Byakuya by his shoulder then?

"My head…" Ichigo mutters as he closes his eyes and takes a few breaths.

"Will that be acceptable to both of you, to be married next weekend?" Byakuya asks in a clipped voice. Ichigo looks up and nods his head quickly. Byakuya sashays out of the room, and Ichigo sinks to his knees.

"I can't believe I went to see your brother when I was so unimaginably drunk…" Ichigo groans in a pained voice. Rukia smiles as she agrees.

"Neither can I…trust me." Rukia says with a giggle. She doubts Ichigo will drink that heavily again for a long while, judging by his reaction from it today.

"Why didn't you stop me?" Ichigo asks her pathetically.

"I didn't know what you were up to. You didn't tell me anything until you got home." Rukia informs Ichigo with a nod of her head. Ichigo's eyes widen as his gaze shoots to his father.

"Damn you!" Ichigo starts after his father, and Isshin runs away as he laughs.

Rukia giggles as she watches her future husband chase down her future father-in-law and she laughs when Ichigo finally catches his father and proceeds to deliver a series of punches as he yells.

"What in the hell kind of father does that to his son anyways?" Ichigo shouts as he pounds Isshin's head into the floor.

"One day you'll laugh," Isshin says with a smile, before Ichigo punches him in the face.

"Shut up!" Ichigo shouts as he punches his father again.

"I can't wait to tell your child about this," Isshin says, still laughing. Ichigo groans in dissatisfaction.

"Thanks a lot," Ichigo grumbles unhappily.

"You're welcome." Isshin says before he dashes away again.

Rukia walks over to Ichigo's side and smiles at him.

"I was happy that you got the blessing from ni-sama." Rukia tells him with a grin. Ichigo sighs as he remembers how in his dream he had shaken Byakuya way too much.

_At least someone's happy._


	69. As Requested: Urahara's Mirrors 6

_**A/N- I have no idea whether or not Ichigo will age now that he's been changed into a Shinigami by Urahara but for the purposes of this story, he does not age. This story is dedicated to the person who requested it, I hope you all like it!**_

_Urahara's Mirrors 6_

Ayako sighs. Even though she knows why her parents don't age, her friends have begun to make strange comments about how her parents don't ever seem to change.

It was many years ago that the entire family had been out together, and on their way home from a festival, when a huge hollow had appeared from the sky. Her father had searched his belt and realized he didn't have something he needed, and her mother had eaten a green candy tablet to change into a Shinigami. Ayako had been shocked to watch her mother defeat the strange looking monster in mere moments.

That night there had been a long family meeting about the specifics of their parents, and all three kids had sat open mouthed when they'd been told the truth.

When Ayako was twelve, her mother took her out to a deserted field and began to teach her the basics of kidou, saying that it was important that she had a way to protect herself or her siblings in case they were confronted by a hollow when she or Ichigo weren't around.

Kidou had been extremely easy for Ayako to get the hang of, and within a month she was already able to perform kidou spells well enough that her mother thought she could easily kill a hollow.

This is the only secret that she has from her twin. On the days that her mother took her out alone, she has no idea what Akio was up to, but so far, they haven't been unlucky enough to encounter a hollow when their parents weren't around. Lately though, Ayako has noticed that her Akio's reiatsu seems to be growing at a fast rate. Even Yukio has an amazing amount of reiatsu, and he's two years younger than the two of them.

Ayako has always felt a little bit like the oddball, since her reiatsu doesn't seem to overflow like her brothers seem to at times. She wonders why her mother taught her the kidou and not one of her brothers instead. She knows that her mother hasn't taught either of them any kidou, since her mother had shared that fact with her on many occasions.

"What's wrong with you?" Akio asks as he busts into her room and sees her blue expression.

"Nothing in particular." Ayako tells her brother before she stands up and looks at him. "Why are you in my room, and why didn't you knock before coming in?" Ayako asks him in a softly dangerous voice.

"Shut up. I knew you weren't changing or anything." Akio says with a scoff before he comes in and sits on the bed next to her.

"How did you know?" Ayako asks him with a raised eyebrow.

"Twin intuition." Akio says with a grin. Ayako rolls her eyes.

"We don't have that. We aren't identical twins." She informs her brother with a scowl.

"Think about it. When was the last time I walked in here without knocking and caught you at a bad time?" Akio asks her softly. Ayako thinks back and she realizes he's right. He never does walk in her room when she's changing her clothes or when she's fresh out of the bath.

"It's amazing that you know that." Ayako ways with big amazed eyes.

"I can always feel your reiatsu when you're doing private things." Akio informs her softly. Ayako can't hide her surprise.

"You can feel my reiatsu?" Ayako says in surprise. She had thought hers was so weak that only her parents knew it.

"It's been getting stronger." Akio says as he glances at his sister.

"It doesn't feel that way." Ayako says as she brushes an errant hair away from her eyes. She looks at her brother's identical eyes, and she realizes something is on his mind.

"Well I've noticed it getting stronger." Akio tells her before scoots back on her bed and looks out the window.

"Is something bugging you?" Ayako asks her brother softly. She knows the troubled look in his eyes. Something is definitely bothering him.

"Isn't it strange that you and I look so much like mom and dad?" Akio asks her as he stares out the window.

"Yukio does too. It's not strange for children to resemble their parents." Ayako says as she scoots back to look at her brother in the eyes. He refuses to make eye contact with her though.

"Do you think we'll become as powerful as they are?" Akio asks her softly. Ayako grins at her brother.

"Yes. I think we will be very powerful Shinigami someday." Ayako tells her brother with a wistful smile. Together they've dreamed about what kind of zanpakutous they'll have when they finally become Shinigami.

"I worry that we won't live up to the expectations people have of us. Especially when Uncle Byakuya comes to visit. His reiatsu is so staggering. I can hardly believe that dad beat him when he was only sixteen." Akio says in a low voice.

"It was to save mom though. Dad has always done anything for her," Ayako says with a smile. She knows that like her mother, she wants an amazingly strong man at her side that will adore and cherish her.

"A few of my friends were asking why mom and dad don't look older." Akio finally admits, and Ayako smiles.

"It's been happening with me a lot lately too. People always give me and mom double takes when we're out together, and most people who don't know us think that we're sisters. It's kind of weird." Ayako says with a small laugh.

"It's the same when I'm with dad." Akio says with a smile.

"How long do you think it will take before we start to look older than the two of them?" She whispers to her brother, and his eyes widen in horror.

"By the time we turn nineteen, we'll probably look older." Akio says, dreading the day that happens. He's sure that as the years pass by, they'll all get stranger and stranger looks from people when they walk around with their parents.

"Remember when the next door neighbor started to spread rumors?" Ayako asks her brother in a hushed voice and he smiles.

It had been about a year ago, and one neighbor had called the news to report that her neighbors don't age, and probably are aliens of some sort. Akio and Ayako had watched out of the window as their mother had rushed over to the woman and the news reporters and had left them in a huge cloud of smoke before she simply walked away.

The news people thought they were asking their neighbor for directions, and their neighbor thought she had been giving them directions. Akio and Ayako had exchanged smiles. They didn't know exactly what their mother had done, but they knew she had taken care of the growing problem.

When in private kidou training with her mother, Ayako had learned exactly what her mother had done, she had altered their memories. It had been shocking for Ayako to learn that such a thing was even possible and her mother had warned her to remember that in her life she'd often see things considered to be impossible.

"Come with me to the arcade. We'll take Yukio too." Akio says suddenly. Ayako grins happily at her brother.

"Alright!" She shouts and they dash out of her room to go and get their little brother.

When they arrive at the arcade, Yukio laughs and grabs his sister's hand. It's tradition that they race each other in the racecars and then Akio races the winner. Yukio is a whiz at racing, he usually beats the twins when they race at the cars.

From there they move to fight games which Ayako excels at. Her brothers almost always take turns getting their asses kicked by her in the fight games. It's rare when one of them can actually manage to beat her at a fighting game in the arcade or on their fighting videogames at home.

Akio grins as he watches his sister and brother energetically hit the buttons and joystick as they play the game.

While Ayako is playing Yukio at a martial arts game, she doesn't see a boy reach out to try and feel her rear end, and she certainly doesn't notice when Akio's fist flies out and decks the guy in the cheek. Yukio is as oblivious as Ayako is, as their brother is now sitting on the offensive kid and punching him repeatedly.

Yukio groans when Ayako does a special combo move to defeat him in the game, and they both realize that Akio is fighting an unknown boy. Ayako and Yukio work together to pull Akio off of the boy, and the moment they do, the kid tears off as though he's being chased by a pack of hungry lions.

Ayako glares at her brother, but he just crosses his arms and looks away from her.

It's been happening more and more often lately, that when they go out, lecherous boys are noticing his sister, and Akio doesn't like the boys his sister seems to attract, even if she is totally oblivious to the growing attention that she's been receiving.

No matter how much Yukio and Ayako question him, Akio won't explain why he was fighting, and he finally convinces them that they should finish how they always do at the arcade before they leave.

Yukio and Akio both try a few times to win their sister a prize. They're only successful about a quarter of the time that they go to the arcade, and this happens to be one of their unlucky days.

Ayako always smiles when they play for her. She has a shelf in her bedroom lined with the little toys and stuffed animals that her brothers have won for her over the years.

Finally the trio head home, all smiling since they had fun at the arcade. Ayako thinks back on how her brother was pounding on yet another boy, since it's been happening more often lately that she finds him fighting with boys that she doesn't even know.

They had been taking karate together ever since they were almost five years old, at their father's insistence, and both of them are quite talented at karate, but she doesn't understand why her brother has to take it to such a violent level for no apparent reason.

_Maybe he shouldn't have learned it if he's going to be so liberal in handing people their asses, especially in front of Yukio._

Ayako is lost in thought as her brothers joke around with one another, but suddenly Akio grips her arm tightly, as he looks up at the sky. Yukio's gasp comes next and Ayako can't even make a sound at first.

Not one, but two hollows have appeared, and it doesn't look like anybody else around can see them.

"We have to run." Akio says softly and Yukio nods. They both look at their sister with worry since they can both easily outrun her, but she's staring at the hollows transfixed. They swoop down from the sky at her and her brothers and Ayako doesn't even think about it.

"Oh lord, mask of flesh and bone, all creation, flutter of wings, Ye who bears the name of man, truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams, unleash but slightly, the wrath of your claws! Way of destruction, number thirty-three, Blue Fire, Crash Down!" Ayako yells it out with all of her heart and puts every last bit of her reiatsu into the attack.

Akio and Yukio stare in amazement as her powerful kidou spell kills not just one, but both of the hollows. Akio stares in amazement as his sister sways and then crumples to the ground after watching the hollows disintegrate from her powerful spell.

"Ayako! Ayako!" Akio yells as he kneels down next to his sister. Yukio's eyes are wide.

"She killed them. How did she do that?" Yukio breathes with big round eyes. Akio feels like he wants to cry as he stares at his sister's unmoving body.

His father had taught him how to Shunpo, but that wasn't much help for anything other than saving himself, and maybe his brother. He certainly couldn't shunpo holding both of them.

Akio had never told his sister that his father had taught him how to Shunpo, he had kept that a secret. Yukio was scheduled to join Akio the next time he trained in shunpo with his father, but his sister had destructive power. An amazing destructive power that she had never told him about.

_I guess we were both keeping secrets, eh Ayako?_

Akio gathers his sister into his arms.

"We need to get her home quickly." Akio tells Yukio in a hard voice as he begins to run towards home with his unconscious and limp sister in his arms.

They don't realize that they run directly by Ichigo's old school teacher on their way home who stares at the kids until they're out of sight and gives off a huge smile.

"They were definitely Kurosaki's kids." She says with a grin before she heads back on her way home.

When Akio gets in the door with Ayako, Yukio starts to scream for their parents. They come running out, from their bedroom and their faces turn white when they see Ayako limp and unconscious in Akio's arms.

"Ayako!" Ichigo says in a fearful voice as he dashes over to his son's side and extracts his daughter from him.

"What happened?" Rukia asks her sons in a worried voice as she carefully inspects her daughter for any injuries.

"Two hollows appeared." Yukio sniffles out, causing their parents to exchange a glance.

"We were halfway to the location when the hollow reiatsu disappeared suddenly." Ichigo tells his sons softly. He sets Ayako gently on the couch.

"Ayako killed them?" Rukia asks with astonishment. Akio nods his head but then a few tears fall from his eyes.

"She fell down right after and she hasn't woken up since!" Akio admits in a terrorized voice, and he's surprised when his parents exchange a sheepish grin.

"She's fine, she just used up too much reiatsu. She must have been terribly worried that something might happen to one of you," Rukia tells her sons with a smile.

"I didn't know she had that kind of power." Akio tells his mother as he gives her a look. She grins at him.

"She takes after me and has such natural talent with kidou. Just like you boys take after your father." Rukia says, giving her son a meaningful look.

"I can't believe you were teaching her kidou, while all I was learning to do was run!" Akio says in an annoyed voice, causing his father to gasp angrily.

"Hey! If I'd had that skill at your age, I might have been able to save your mother the first time I tried to save her instead of getting owned by her brother…don't be such an ungrateful brat!" Ichigo snaps at his oldest son, who's eyes widen at his father's anger. His father almost never gets angry with them. Rukia shakes her head at Akio with a wide eyed look.

"Shunpo is a wonderful skill to have." Rukia tells Akio softly. Akio glares at his parents.

"Did it ever occur to you that I might want to have the ability to protect my siblings too? There were two of them, that's why she used so much of her strength. If I had known a spell too…she might not have had such a bad reaction after the fact!" Akio argues as he looks hopefully at his parents.

"The truth is…I have yet to learn kidou." Ichigo says to his son as he crosses his arms.

"Mom? Will you teach me?" Akio asks with pleading eyes. Rukia stares into her son's eyes and marvels at how much he looks exactly like Ichigo. Ichigo's eyes always turn blue when he starts exuding spiritual power, and Akio is the exact image of Ichigo when he's exuding that kind of power.

"I'm afraid that you'll blow yourself up if you attempt the kind of kidou that your sister can do. Are you willing to risk that?" Rukia asks her son with a small grin.

Akio swallows nervously, but nods his head yes.

"I want to learn it too." Akio tells her softly. Rukia grins.

"Next time I take Ayako out, you can come with us, and Yukio will go with your father then." Rukia says in agreement. Ichigo looks a little disappointed, but at least Yukio will start to learn how to shunpo.

"I want to come and learn kidou too!" Yukio chirps out next, and Rukia doesn't miss the complete look of hurt in her husband's face that his kids are more impressed with Rukia's talent with kidou than with his natural shunpo talent.

"You're too young to start with kidou. You will go with your father and learn what your brother has already learned." Rukia tells Yukio in a stern voice. He looks disappointed but he recognizes that this is his mother's final answer.

"Alright," Yukio says in a let down voice.

"Go wash up. We will have dinner in about an hour." Rukia tells the boys. Ichigo and Rukia watch as they dash up the stairs. Rukia looks up at Ichigo who still looks like his feelings are hurting a bit at his kids blatant disregard for his abilities.

"She did a good job." Ichigo finally says as his gaze rests on his daughter, who looks so similar to his wife.

"You know you'll be the most popular one, when they see your bankai. They won't hate shunpo anymore when they see how magnificent you truly are with it. Remember how Yukio saw it when he was still a toddler? He didn't shut up about it for months." Rukia tells Ichigo with a smile.

Ichigo's eyes appear to look a bit happier at that memory. He smiles down at his wife and he gives her a long loving look.

"No matter what, I'm afraid you'll always be more popular with our kids. You're just that kind of amazing woman." Ichigo whispers before he leans down to give his wife a long and smooth kiss.

"You're the best." Rukia whispers after he pulls away.

"All of these years and I still love you as desperately as I did the day we got married." Ichigo says, his voice filled with wonder. Rukia grins and she grabs his hand to yank him towards the bedroom.

"I want to finish what we were starting before the kids got home," Rukia tells him with a wink. Ichigo smiles back in agreement.

They walk together into their bedroom, which is decorated with all kinds of different mirrors and they begin to kiss. When Ichigo pulls away and begins to undress his wife, he looks at her smooth back in the mirror behind her and he gives her a hungry look.

It's always their reminder that their home and wondrous family got started with a few mirrors.


	70. Secret Song

**A/N- I know none of you know this, and so I will share it with you now. I am a musician and have been playing the piano since I was five and I have been played the trumpet since I was eleven. I have always been intrigued about Ichigo's musical abilities due to the guitar case I always spot in his bedroom and was quite inspired to write the next story that I have here. I do have more requests, but here is another of my own in between, I hope you all enjoy it!**

**Theresa Crane**

_Secret Song_

Rukia grumbles as she looks around Ichigo's room. He's not home, and nobody else is home either. She wonders where everyone is at, as she sits down on Ichigo's bed. Her eyes are drawn to the guitar case that has always sat in his room.

_I've never seen him play it_.

Rukia wonders why he has the thing, since all she's seen it do is collect dust in the corner of his room. Well, it would be dusty if not for Yuzu's concentration to ridding the house of dust once a week.

Rukia remembers how Ichigo was when she first met him, and how different he is now. She'll never forget how he asked her, to let him be a Shinigami a bit longer even if she did feel her power returning. How he told her he wanted to become strong enough to protect everyone from hollows.

She knows that his association with her gave him something that could really bring a smile to his face.

_The ability to protect was what he longed for the most. I gave it to him and we've been so close ever since then._

Rukia lays back on Ichigo's bed and thinks about how amazingly easy it had been for her to connect with Ichigo. Nobody in her life has ever affected her on the level that Ichigo does. His ability to make her feel like her insides are turning themselves inside out goes above and beyond any feelings that any man in her past has given her.

Rukia had recently been asked a question that she often tried to put out of her mind, but once in awhile it comes blowing through her mind and she's forced to be unhappy until she can pull her mind away from it.

_How will you feel if he proclaims his love for someone else?_

Trust her childhood friend Renji to ask a question that could twist her heart up so much that it actually hurts. She can't even fathom the idea of Ichigo being with anybody besides herself. What other woman would be able to deal with the closeness that the two of them share even if he did try a relationship?

Rukia has always been so sure that she and Ichigo would one day proclaim their love and be a true family, together. She always had been able to so clearly imagine it.

_Ichigo with someone else? That would be like having a million zanpakutous slowly cutting me at the same time. I feel like I might fall apart when I even imagine it_.

Rukia knows she has to get her mind off of her fears and nightmares, and so her eyes snap back to the guitar case. She decides to open up the thing and take a peek inside for herself.

Rukia sits up and bounces off the bed.

She opens the case, and sees an ordinary looking guitar inside. It's nothing overly interesting. Her eyes snap towards a flap in the case where music is hanging out, and Rukia picks it up and looks at it.

It appears Ichigo has written some of his own music. Rukia begins to read the lyrics.

_It used to be such an unsatisfying existence filled with loss and pain,_

_The rain would beat down on me, until it felt like I might go insane,_

_Time passed by so slowly, and there was hardly ever a reason to smile,_

_When I think back on those times, I realize that it has been quite awhile._

_No matter what the weather is outside, inside my heart it's sunny and hot,_

_Try not to think about the days I cried, instead I think of how I have a lot,_

_One night became my everything, in an instant I was completely saved,_

_I sit here all alone and sing, even though she gave me everything I craved._

_She didn't mean to give as much as she did, but I unintentionally took it all,_

_I felt her within me, even the things she hid…I wasn't prepared for the fall,_

_How am I supposed to ask for more, when she gave me a piece of her soul,_

_Every day I love her more than before, she is ice, but I don't feel the cold._

_I wait for her to finally ask me to give my soul to her, but she won't do that,_

_She's more of a giver than an asker, no matter where her heart may be at,_

_As long as she is near me, I can relax knowing everything is okay,_

_But when she's gone, I sing about her, just like I'm doing today._

_My feelings will get through, they'll connect to her soon,_

_I can feel it in my heart's hot sun, even as I stare at the moon,_

_Singing alone like this is the only way I know to let it all out,_

_Now I wait for her to appear and make me smile with her shout._

Rukia reads the words over and over again until she feels her eyes fill up with tears of overwhelming happiness. She had no idea that Ichigo could write such a moving song.

She can't even imagine him singing it while he plays the guitar. She wonders how long it took him to write it, and her hands shake as she reads it over and over again.

"Wow. The things you can learn even after you think you know somebody so well." Rukia says in wonder, before she sticks the song back into the flap. She can't write music, but she can write poetry, which is all songs really are anyways.

Rukia sits down at Ichigo's desk to leave him a poem, and she sits there for quite awhile just thinking about it, before she is completed and satisfied by her work. She smiles and hops out of the window to wait and see what happens.

When Ichigo arrives home, he heads up into his room, but he doesn't immediately spot the poem that Rukia left him. Kon sneaks into his bedroom breathing hard as he stares up at Ichigo.

"Your sister always drags me back to her room when she finds me in here. I had a hell of a time getting back here unseen! It took me an entire day!" Kon says as he pants heavily and looks around expectantly.

"Try to be quiet. My family can hear you when you whine and cry in such a loud voice," Ichigo says with a sigh before he flops down onto his bed.

"Where's nee-san? I sensed her around here earlier." Kon says as he glances around and then goes over to the closet.

"Rukia was here?" Ichigo says with surprise as he sits straight up.

"Nee-san! Are you in the closet?" Kon asks before he slides open the door. Ichigo holds his breath and lets out a disappointed sigh when the closet is empty.

He's about to sit back in his bed when he sees a sheet of paper on his desk that wasn't there before.

_Ichigo-_

_I have found the answer to the question that I had been searching for,_

_I know now that I can bare my heart fully to the only man that I adore,_

_I was always afraid of pushing you away when I shared all of what is in my heart,_

_I have always felt an unexplainable emptiness and pain whenever we are apart._

_I have never been experienced at love, after all, you are my first,_

_I have so many strong feelings for you, it feels like I might burst,_

_I had no idea that you ached for me in the exact same way,_

_I know now though, because I found your song for me today._

_I was so moved in ways that I can't even begin to try and explain,_

_I used to think I had so much to lose, now I know what I'll gain,_

_Now that I know what we feel is mutual, and I know that it's true,_

_On the school roof, imagining my first kiss, is where I wait for you._

Ichigo's hand shakes.

"She saw the song?" Ichigo's voice shows total amazement.

He had never told any person alive that he had written a song for Rukia. It had been a night when he had been missing her a great deal, and he didn't have any way of talking about it.

He had been so uneasy until he had completed the song and he would sing it very softly as he strummed his guitar, whenever he was alone in his room. He wouldn't even sing it in front of Kon.

"What's wrong, Ichigo?" Kon asks, as he gives Ichigo a completely perplexed look.

"Rukia was here." Ichigo says before he sticks the poem in his drawer so that it can't be seen. "Kon. Get in my body." Ichigo orders before he uses his substitute license to pop Kon out of his body. Ichigo pops himself out of his body and drops the pill in his unmoving body.

"Damn, can't you give me some warning before you do that?" Kon asks as he rubs his head.

"I'll be back with Rukia in a little while." Ichigo says, before he flies out of his window, and uses shunpo to reach the school in the fastest amount of time.

His heart pounds wildly when he sees Rukia standing near the edge of the roof, deep in thought. Ichigo walks over to her side and looks down at her. He sees the hint of a happy smile on her face now that he's with her, and she turns her head to look at him.

"I've been waiting for you." Rukia says in a near whisper.

"I arrived here as quickly as I possibly could," Ichigo whispers back as he looks into her huge and beautiful blue eyes. She turns fully to face him, and he does the same.

"It feels like it's been so much longer than that." Rukia says in a low voice as she stares at him with a meaningful expression. Ichigo's eyes soften and he lets out a rueful sigh.

"You're right. It feels like we've been waiting forever." Ichigo says, as he's unable to tear his eyes away from hers.

"Well don't make me wait any longer," Rukia tells him in an aching voice. Ichigo gives her a genuine smile of love before he puts his hands on her waist.

Rukia wonders if he can hear her heart beating as clearly as she can hear it beating. Ichigo leans down, and Rukia stops thinking. He kisses her deeply for over a minute, before he finally pulls away, breathing hard and staring at her with a spark of desire lighting his eyes.

"All of this, because you found my secret song?" Ichigo asks in a whisper of wonder. Rukia nods and looks at him with love shining so obviously in her eyes.

"It was such a beautiful secret song…I love you more than I even thought possible," Rukia says in a whisper. Ichigo smiles at her, and he feels as though several rainbows just appeared in his inner world.

"Come on Rukia, lets go home." Ichigo says in a low voice before he squats down for Rukia to climb on his back. She smiles and gets on, and lets him fly her back home.

_I've never felt so happy before in my life…this is the power of Ichigo's secret song._


	71. She Reminds Me Of You

**A/N-You shouldn't read this if you haven't watched Kill Bill and plan to. I have had this story written for awhile and I really like it and so I decided to finally share it. I hope you all like it too! Still working on the requests too, this is just an extra :)**

**Kubo owns bleach, and Quentin owns Kill Bill. I own neither one!**

_She reminds me of You_

Rukia giggles as she shoves some popcorn into her mouth. She decides to watch "Kill Bill" and she pops in the movie, hoping Ichigo will be back before the movie actually starts.

Isshin has to take some medical seminar to keep him up to date in his field, and the girls are spending the night with some girlfriends. Rukia grins as she pops some more buttery popcorn in her mouth. She smiles when she hears the door open and Ichigo walks in. She grins at him as he appears in front of her.

"I picked out a movie!" She says, excitedly. Ichigo hears the familiar opening theme of "_Kill Bill_" and he grins in return.

"This is a good movie." He tells her as he places a tub of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream on the counter. "The director of this movie is a genius!" Ichigo exclaims before popping into the seat next to her and grabbing some popcorn out of the bowl in her lap.

"Ichigo, isn't that ice cream?" Rukia asks, pointing at the tub. Ichigo follows her gaze.

"Oh yeah, I should stick that in the freezer." Ichigo says, hopping up and over the couch, he quickly puts the ice cream away and rejoins Rukia for the movie. The beat to the movie is very exciting, and Rukia feels her heart speed up in anticipation of it.

Rukia finds herself drawn in by the very first scene in the movie. She is totally focused and Ichigo grins at her immediate concentration. The beaten and bloody Uma Thurman has her total attention and Ichigo nearly laughs when Rukia jumps up at the gunshot to her head.

"Wow, intense!" Rukia says as the "_Bang Bang_" song comes on. She grins at Ichigo. "I think I'm going to like this movie!" Ichigo smiles in response.

"I had a feeling it would be up your alley." Ichigo says, pleased that she looks so satisfied already with the movie. She leans into him a little bit as the part with the fight between the blonde woman and the black woman start. She's riveted by the screen. She looks confused when the little girl shows up and the fight abruptly ends. Rukia is intrigued by the codenames that the women have.

She is shocked when the other woman tries to kill "_Black Mamba_" with a hidden gun, and is immediately killed with the knife to her heart. She finds the blood splattered bride section to be a bit disturbing and even more disturbing are the hospital scenes. Rukia seems to enjoy the part where the blonde kills the men who think it's okay to sexually assault her, since she has "no plumbing down there." Her satisfied grin when Black Mamba cuts Buck's Achilles Tendon, makes Ichigo glad she considers him an ally and not an enemy. She had looked pretty pissed when the man was making the sex deal for the girl he believed to be in a coma.

"She's awesome!" Rukia shouts as the man falls from getting cut. Ichigo laughs.

"She's as ruthless as you are." Ichigo says with a grin. Rukia smiles at the compliment.

She starts to look horrified as the girl remembers how Buck came and assaulted her when she was in a coma. She watches in anticipation as Black Mamba gives Buck the final punishment with the door. Ichigo can feel the pain.

She watches in avid interest as the woman tries to wiggle her big toe and reflects on the past with the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, on her enemies, and their pasts. As the movie continues, she leans on Ichigo a little bit more. She's surprised that one of the characters has a past with someone whose name is _Matsumoto_. She seemed highly impressed by the anime in the scenes.

Rukia seemed to enjoy the part of the movie where Black Mamba gets a magnificent sword, although she scoffs when the man says that even god would be cut by the sword should she meet him, but she appreciated the scene for its intensity. She laughed at the assistant who insisted he wasn't bald. Ichigo laughed too, they were reminded of Ikkaku.

When she sees O-Ren's personal body guard and her craziness, Rukia grins.

"I'm glad you like this. Maybe tomorrow we'll watch the sequel." Ichigo says as he takes the empty bowl of popcorn into the kitchen and grabs the ice cream. He grabs two spoons and he head back to Rukia and hands her one. They dig into the bucket.

Rukia's eyes are glued to the TV as Boss Tanaka is beheaded by O-Ren. She is engulfed by the speech in English that the woman gives before dropping the head.

"I can't wait for the showdown!" Rukia says in a near squeal. Ichigo laughs at her excitement.

"It's fun watching movies with you." Ichigo says, grinning as he enjoys her company.

"I'm glad you think so!" Rukia says as Black Mamba follows O-Ren to the House of Blue Leaves. She laughs as she watches O-Ren and her posse walk through the club. "Some humans are too full of themselves!" Rukia chuckles.

"You shouldn't always underestimate humans, we tend to surprise." Ichigo says, defending humans. Rukia laughs.

"You're right, there are some amazing humans." Rukia says as she looks meaningfully at him. Ichigo looks back at the movie, his cheeks tinged in pink.

Ichigo feels Rukia flinch when the club scene has Black Mamba calling "O-Ren Ishii! We have unfinished business!"

Rukia watches in fascination as the woman's swordsmanship appears to be top notch, even Rukia's highly impressed with her abilities. She remembers it took her many years of training to be good with her sword techniques, even though kidou came easily to her. They put the ice cream aside.

Her eyes widen further when the club sounds like an army is approaching and in come O-Ren's crazy Eighty Eight. Ichigo, who's feeling sleepy since he's seen the movie a dozen times, throws his arm around her and closes his eyes. Rukia's so focused on the movie that she doesn't notice his arm is around her. She reaches for the ice cream again, and Ichigo's arm falls around her waist as he's dozing off. Rukia stays sitting forward to watch the intense confrontation between Black Mamba and the Crazy Eighty Eight as she eats some more ice cream.

She flinches when one guy gets his eyeball plucked and the woman cuts down her enemies one by one, slowly but surely. Rukia is even more pleased that Ichigo compared the blonde woman to Rukia as the movie goes on.

Rukia enjoys the movie and tempo of the movie when the woman just keeps cutting down her opponents. She's also agreeing with Ichigo's comment about the director being a genius.

She laughs a little when the woman confronts a young man who can't stop shaking and she cuts his sword piece by piece with her superior sword.

She stops eating ice cream when the final battle starts. She loves the snowy setting for the final fight as well. Her heart is racing as the two women face each other and Black Mamba is questioned about her fine sword by O-Ren Ishii.

She watches in anticipation as the music signifies the start of the battle. She can't help but think that O-Ren has a beautiful fighting technique. She's very graceful for a human. Rukia gasps when O-Ren gets a cut in on Black Mamba's back. She unconsciously holds her breath while O-Ren talks down to Black Mamba. Rukia releases her breath when Black Mamba stands once again to keep battling, even after the wound. She sighs in relief when Black Mamba cuts Cotton Mouth's leg next.

Rukia gasps loudly when Black Mamba scalps her opponent next. She watches, wide eyed. She glances at Ichigo who is fully asleep. She's tempted to go sleep in his bed when the movie's over and leave him here. She grins. That's just what she'll do as punishment for him dozing off during such a fantastic movie!

Rukia watches with great interest as the movie concludes and the scene with Sophie and Bill and the Death List Five. Rukia gasps again when she learns that Black Mamba's child is still alive. Now she's certain she's going to watch the sequel the next night! What an amazing movie! Rukia's phone starts beeping to alert to a hollow and Ichigo's eyes snap open at that.

Ichigo and Rukia go to slay the hollow, and Rukia's glad it didn't appear until the movie had ended.

"Shit!" Ichigo starts swearing.

"What?" Rukia calls out.

"My sisters are spending the night near here! Damn it!" Ichigo yells. There's still no sign of the hollow.

"Calm down! Don't get all worked up!" Rukia orders as she waits around and tries to sense the presence of a hollow. The hollow finally appears not even fifty meters from the home where Karin and Yuzu are staying and Ichigo quickly and angrily kills it.

They walk back home and Ichigo looks at Rukia.

"How did you like that movie?" He asks her. Rukia grins.

"I'm insisting on watching the sequel now." Rukia says. "I was going to wait until tomorrow, but I'm no longer sleepy after the hollow appeared." Rukia explains. Ichigo grins and they get home and pop in the sequel. Rukia at first is interested, but the tempo of the second movie is much different from the first, it moves at a much slower pace.

Rukia ends up nodding off onto Ichigo's shoulder. He wakes up at the part where Beatrice yanks out the eyeball of Miss Driver. He notices that Rukia has fallen asleep, and so he lifts her in his arms and takes her up to his room and sets her on his bed. He goes back downstairs and puts the remaining ice cream in the freezer and puts away the movie.

It's nice that Dad isn't here and Rukia doesn't have to be in hiding. It was a really nice evening even with the unwanted appearance of a hollow. Ichigo heads up and climbs in bed next to Rukia and closes his eyes. What a good night. He puts his arm around her and falls asleep.

When Rukia wakes up in the morning, cuddling in Ichigo's arms as he sleeps, she immediately turns red. After a moment though, a truly happy smile appears on her face. She never imagined that the first time they'd share a bed it could feel as natural as fighting together next to him. She places a small kiss on his cheek as he sleeps and she admires the look of him.

"Thank you, Ichigo." Rukia whispers before she pulls herself out of the bed to go and bathe.

She smiles as she is in the tub and she spends all day smiling. Inside her heart though, she's shouting.

_I slept with Ichigo!_


	72. As Requested: Breaking The News 2

**A/N-I had a request to do a follow up to Breaking The News, and so here it is, and it's dedicated to the one that requested it.**

_Breaking The News 2_

"Kurosaki, why have you called all of us here?" Ishida asks as he glances around the Urahara shop to see all of the usual characters present.

"We're getting married this weekend, and we'd like all of you to come." Rukia says with a beaming smile. All of their friends mouths drop open.

"But…you only just started dating!" Inoue says with wide eyes. Rukia and Ichigo blush.

"Ni-sama insisted. We wouldn't be rushing it like this if things were…different." Rukia says in a halting voice. Ishida's eyes widen in understanding.

"Kurosaki…Kuchiki-san…you're expecting, aren't you?" Ishida says in an awed voice. The couple blush again.

"Yes." Rukia answers softly, causing Sado's eyes to pop out of his head.

"You got her pregnant?" Sado says with a note of disbelief in his voice.

"It's not like that's what my goal was," Ichigo mutters as he looks away from them.

"What about Kuchiki-san's brother?" Ishida asks with wide eyes.

"What about him?" Ichigo asks, even as he glares at Renji, who has started to chuckle a bit too loudly. Rukia is smothering a smile, but Ichigo is too busy glaring at Renji to notice his pregnant fiancé's amusement.

"Well since he's a noble, I imagine he won't be too pleased about this. How on earth are you going to tell him?" Ishida asks as he starts to worry for Ichigo's well-being.

"Ichigo already took care of that, even if he did it when he was totally drunk out of his mind," Renji says as a shout of laughter escapes his lips. Rukia lets out a little giggle too, and Ichigo begins to take turns glaring at her and Renji.

"You did it when you were drunk?" Sado asks with huge eyes. He had never seen Ichigo drink in the past so this is surprising news.

"It's my dad's fault, he got me drunk…I don't even quite remember all that happened when I was in Soul Society, I only remember bits and parts, like it was a dream." Ichigo says in an embarrassed voice. Ishida guffaws, and Inoue covers her mouth with her hand.

"Kurosaki-kun, I'm amazed!" Inoue says as she can't even begin to picture what drunken Ichigo asking for Byakuya's permission to marry Rukia must have been like.

"Oh it was fucking rich! When Captain Kuchiki first saw Ichigo, he was ready to leave the room, and he ordered Ichigo to come back to talk when he was sober. Then Ichigo used shunpo to stop him from leaving, and he grabbed him by his shoulder and started to shake him as he asked for his permission to marry Rukia." Renji says as he shakes his head at the memory.

"I used shunpo?" Ichigo asks, confused. He remembered dashing over to Byakuya, but he didn't remember using shunpo to do it.

"Yes. And before you doubt me, keep in mind that I was not drunk, unlike you." Renji informs him with another laugh.

"You really shook Kuchiki-san's brother?" Ishida squeaks as he looks at Ichigo with horror.

Ichigo groans and runs his hand through his hair.

"He did it alright," Renji says, still chuckling. Rukia lets out a laugh.

"I can't picture it either," Rukia admits as she giggles some more.

"Congratulations, Kuchiki-san." Inoue says softly as her eyes travel to Rukia's abdomen. Everyone else nods their agreement to that sentiment and Rukia smiles at them.

"Thank you, Inoue." Rukia says with a smile before nodding at Ishida and Renji with the smile still lighting up her face.

"Kurosaki-san, you have some big cojones." Urahara says with amusement tingeing his voice. Rukia starts nodding her head in agreement, only to get glared at by Ichigo.

"Shut up. It's not like I started to drink with the intention of getting drunk just to talk to Byakuya, it just ended up happening that way." Ichigo says in a low rumbling voice.

"Still, I think it's funny that you went to see him drunk. You've never shown that man an ounce of respect," Yoruichi says with a big smile from her seat next to Urahara.

"I thought I was going to die when Ichigo announced that he was about to rock the captain's world. It was seriously comical." Renji says, causing everyone to start busting up into uncontrollable laughter.

"He said that? That he was going to rock his world?" Rukia asks as tears start to squeeze out of her eyes due to all of the laughter.

"While he was still shaking the captain, he said it." Renji says with a firm nod of his head.

"Holy shit, that is just too funny," Yoruichi says as she titters with the rest of them.

"What was I thinking? Seeing him when I was drunk?" Ichigo whispers with wide eyes.

"I've never seen the captain treated so casually before in my life. He didn't know how to react." Renji says and Rukia can't help but to smile. Ichigo has never had a whole lot of respect for nobility in Soul Society, and it has always shown.

"I wish you had video," Rukia says in between laughs. Everyone else starts nodding their immediate agreement.

"The way he casually revealed that Rukia was pregnant really took the cake. He said it with this goofy smile on his face, and the captain looked like someone snuck some vinegar into his meal or something. It was unbelievable." Renji says, and Ichigo glares at him.

"They don't need the play-by-play of it all!" Ichigo finally snaps, since what he's hearing is appalling even to him.

"I liked hearing it," Rukia says as she still is laughing from what she's heard thus far. She can't even begin to imagine what her brother's face must have looked like during Ichigo's little drunken talk with him.

"I don't know what was funnier…when Ichigo told the captain that he was going to shit himself or when Ichigo told the captain that he was about to rock his world. The whole thing was astonishingly unbelievable." Renji says as he's still laughing and shaking his head.

"Kurosaki…you are officially insane." Ishida says with completely wide eyes. Renji nods his head in agreement to that remark.

"Shut up! I barely remember what happened…" Ichigo says a bit helplessly, and Yoruichi starts to laugh so hard that no sound is coming out.

"That is fucking rich!" Yoruichi breathes out a minute later when her laughing starts to subside.

Ichigo looks around the room at everyone's amused faces, and he doesn't really appreciate the feeling that everyone is laughing at him.

"Are all of you going to come to the wedding?" Rukia asks softly, when she notes Ichigo's growing unhappiness.

Everyone starts to smile and nod, and Ichigo lets out a sigh of relief that his drunken request to Byakuya is no longer the focus of the conversation.

Inoue looks at the couple longingly and Inoue's last thought as Ichigo and Rukia leave the Urahara store is one that will disturb her until after their wedding.

_I wish I could be Kuchiki-san…for just one day._

Rukia and Ichigo head home and Rukia smiles up at Ichigo.

"It's my dream to be marrying you." Rukia admits in a soft and happy voice. Ichigo smiles down at her and he squeezes her hand as they walk along.

"It's been my dream too, Rukia. For the longest time." Ichigo says with a sheepish grin.

Rukia smiles the biggest smile of her life.

_There has never been a better time to be me._


	73. What Ichigo Overheard

**A/N-This is supposed to be set in Soul Society, after Rukia was saved, after she told him she'd be staying in Soul Society,and after the party at Kuukaku's house, but before he left for the living world. It was an idea I had and so I had to write it out. I hope you all enjoy it!**

_What Ichigo Overheard_

Ichigo had just finished visiting with Rukia, and he'd walked outside when she had said that she had wanted to rest. Ichigo had sat right outside her bedroom on a bench and had observed the layout of the place she had been living in for quite some time.

His mind goes over what just happened.

They had walked back from Shiba Kuukaku's house together, and had parted with Inoue when Ichigo told her to go and rest for the trip back home the next day. He told her he'd walk Rukia home. Inoue had nodded and had turned and left them alone.

"You're staying here, but I'll still see you again, won't I?" Ichigo had finally asked her. He hadn't wanted to ask that in front of Inoue.

Ichigo stared down at Rukia, the girl he'd just worked his ass off to save. He didn't want to believe he'd live the rest of his life without seeing her, particularly since the whole Aizen affair isn't over yet.

"Of course, fool. I didn't mean that I'd never come back. I just want to regain my spiritual powers first. Being in that tower carved them away a lot, and it will be far easier to fully recover here rather than with you. You'll definitely see me again." Rukia had said with a confident grin.

Ichigo had smiled at her and had felt a wave of relief unlike any other wash over his body. He felt a million times better once he heard it from her own lips.

_She wants to recover her powers. _

Ichigo had wondered how long that will take, but he hadn't really wanted to ask her that either. He didn't want her to know that it will depress him if it takes a long time.

"I'm glad. This whole thing with Aizen…it has really been a terrible development for Soul Society." Ichigo had told her as they walked along.

"Yes, it's extremely unfortunate, and nothing about the future is certain. We will all have to keep fighting this battle. A lot of powerful Shinigami could lose their lives, and I don't want to think about what will happen if their dastardly plan actually succeeds." Rukia had said in a sad voice.

"I'll keep fighting Rukia. I'll never, ever forgive him for what he tried to do. He tried to orchestrate your death, and then he tried to kill you even after he had what he wanted. If Byakuya hadn't come along…" Ichigo had trailed off and realized he might have said too much.

"That's one of the reasons I'm staying. I'm not exactly happy with the way he tried to end my life either. In order to be at my strongest in the shortest amount of time, I need to stay here. Returning with you to the living world sounds really tempting though, I must admit." Rukia said with a dreamy sigh.

"You must really like my closet," Ichigo had said with a chuckle.

"It's one of my favorite places to sleep." Rukia had said as she had smiled up at him.

Ichigo realized that they'd reached their destination, and he wasn't happy about that, but he'd been surprised when Rukia led him inside and let him come inside her bedroom.

"So this is where a real princess sleeps when she's in her own world," Ichigo had said as he'd looked around.

"I'm no princess." Rukia had said with pink cheeks.

"I don't know about that. Your story rivals any other princess story I've had the misfortune of having to read to my sisters." Ichigo had said before he realized he should stop while he was ahead.

"You have to go back tomorrow," Rukia had said softly.

"I know. I'll be okay. Are you sure you're okay?" Ichigo had asked her before he had headed out.

"I'm fine. I'll definitely see you off tomorrow, so this isn't the last time we'll see each other. I just want to get some rest now." Rukia had said with a happy smile.

Ichigo had smiled back at her, and now he's sitting outside her room, considering heading back to his comrades, but really he's in no hurry.

"Byakuya, ni-sama!" Rukia's voice suddenly comes clearly through the open window and Ichigo sits forward. He's afraid if he moves even an inch, he'll be spotted or sensed by Rukia's brother. He has a feeling Byakuya wouldn't like Ichigo hanging around outside of Rukia's room.

"Rukia, what are your plans?" Byakuya's voice is clear enough for Ichigo to hear it.

"I plan to stay here to recover my spiritual power and…" Rukia trails off from nervousness.

"Please finish what you were saying." Byakuya prods.

"Once I'm back to normal, I plan to join Ichigo in the living world. I'm certain Captain Ukitake will grant this request if I make it. Kaien-dono once told me that the reason I belong in Soul Society is because my heart is here. Which is why I want to return to Ichigo when my powers return. I want to be where my heart is." Rukia tells her brother in a loud enough voice for Ichigo to hear. His eyes widen and he grins a little bit.

"I see. I want you to be careful around that boy. There's something very strange, and very dangerous about him." Byakuya said next, causing Ichigo to clench his fists.

_He saw me when that thing took over. What will Rukia say?_

"You think I need to be careful around Ichigo after all he put on the line to save me? Truly?" Rukia had said in a stunned voice to her brother, and Ichigo had smiled at that. She always had such high faith in him. It was one of the things about her that made her so special in his heart.

"I am serious, Rukia. You did not see what I saw in him. I want you to stay on your guard at all times." Byakuya says, before he leaves the room.

"Ichigo and I are connected. I have no reason to be careful around him. I trust him more than anyone." Rukia says once her brother is long gone.

Ichigo feels a bit troubled as he quickly gets the hell away from the Kuchiki mansion. He doesn't want to get caught hanging around.

_What will Rukia do when she finds out about my hollow? Will she still have that same faith in me then? Will she still look at me the same way when she learns the truth about me?_

There's nothing for Ichigo to do but to look forward to the day she returns back to him from Soul Society.

Back in Rukia's room, she falls asleep thinking about Ichigo's comment about her being a princess.

_I was held in a tower, I was definitely a damsel in distress, and I was in a near hopeless situation. I didn't have a knight on a white horse save me, I had something even better. An orange haired Shinigami with a zanpakutou as long as his body, and an unbelievable amount of power. _

_The way he was prepared to take the released Soukyoku head on before I had to was really beyond romantic. No matter how strong he is, or how dangerous he is, I'll love him until the day I die, maybe even after that._

_Thank you, Ichigo._


	74. As Requested: After Overhearing

_**A/N-I had a request to do a second part to the last chapter where I added a scene into Soul Society. This is dedicated to the reviewer who requested it, and I hope you enjoy it. **_

_**I noticed that several people didn't realize I was adding 2 chapters a day for the past couple of days. I do sometimes add 2 a day, just so you're all aware!**_

_**Theresa Crane **_

_After Overhearing_

Ichigo ends up spending all night walking around just thinking. Every time he has the thought that he should return to be near his comrades, he changes his mind. Not knowing how long it will be until he gets to see Rukia again is enough to make him restless for the entire night. Not to mention, he doesn't really feel at all comfortable closing his eyes to sleep in Soul Society, since he's pissed off a lot of people here.

If anything, Ichigo would feel most comfortable sleeping in the underground tunnels, within Yoruichi's barrier, or in Rukia's presence.

When dawn approaches, Ichigo's feet seem to find their way back to the Kuchiki mansion, all by themselves. Ichigo hadn't been consciously thinking of where he was going, but apparently his endless thoughts about Rukia made him subconsciously follow her reiatsu until he's back at the Kuchiki mansion.

"Ichigo!" Rukia's voice calls out and Ichigo glances around until he spots her face in an open window. He waves to her.

"Yo, Rukia." Ichigo calls back, feeling a bit embarrassed that she caught him hanging around her house.

"Want to eat breakfast with me? We can walk to the Senkai gate together after we eat!" Rukia calls out and Ichigo grins.

"Sure." Ichigo heads towards the door and Rukia greets him at the door wearing the same pretty kimono that she had worn the day before. It really compliments her looks, and in the morning sun, she looks even more beautiful than she did last night.

Rukia studies his face and shakes her head as she looks at him.

"You didn't get any sleep last night, did you?" Rukia asks him softly. Ichigo turns his head away so that she doesn't see him blushing.

"I had a lot on my mind." Ichigo grumbles at her as she leads him to the dining area.

"Ni-sama already left, so it will be just you and I for breakfast." Rukia tells him softly. Ichigo's heart races a bit at that information, but he manages to only give her a small smile despite being happy he'll be eating breakfast with her, alone.

"It'll be like those times I snuck breakfast up to you in my room." Ichigo says they settle themselves at the table. Servants immediately start bringing breakfast out and Ichigo's eyes widen at the volume of food brought out to serve just the two of them. He also realizes he's terribly hungry.

"I know it's a lot, but don't worry that it goes to waste. Whatever we don't eat, will be taken to Ni-sama and Renji at the office. They're bound to finish the rest." Rukia tells Ichigo with a small grin.

"Itadakimasu!" Ichigo says with huge eyes as he stares at all of his options on the table. Rukia covers her mouth to hide a giggle at his breakfast etiquette.

If her brother were here right now, he would be so appalled at Ichigo's constant display of his thoughts and emotions. Rukia doesn't mind Ichigo's behavior though, in fact she's always disliked the stuffiness of sharing her meals with Byakuya. Those meals can be downright boring. She's never had a casual meal with her brother since she met him.

Nothing at all is ever boring around Ichigo though. Even watching him eye the biggest breakfast he's probably ever been served is quite an enjoyable experience.

Ichigo finally starts to choose some items for his plate and Rukia follows his suit. She is surprised when he seems to pick out the same types of breakfast foods that she typically prefers to eat.

_We do seem to have a lot in common_.

Rukia finds herself hoping that her future includes a lot more shared breakfasts with Ichigo, and she blushes a little bit at that thought. Not like she'd say that out loud.

"You like the same things I do." Rukia finally tells him with a smile, in between bites. Ichigo glances at her plate and realizes it's true. Their plates look nearly identical in terms of the breakfast foods that they had chosen.

"You're right. I didn't even realize." Ichigo mutters at her with a small smile, gracing his face.

"It's thanks to you that I am here enjoying breakfast today. I'm glad you're here to share it with me." Rukia tells him softly. Ichigo meets her eyes, and he can see the great happiness that is shining in them, and he nods his head with his cheeks pink, and he digs back into his food.

_It's hard to say what I feel, since I don't know when I'll see her again._

Breakfast seems to end way too fast for both of them.

"Want to walk with me to the Senkai gate?" Ichigo asks her when they stand from breakfast. Rukia smiles and nods at him.

They walk very close to one another for the walk to the Senkai gate, and it's a quiet walk the entire time. Rukia smiles happily when she spots Ukitake there with Inoue, Ishida, Yoruichi, and Sado. She waves at her captain.

"Captain Ukitake!" Rukia calls out, and Ukitake smiles at them.

"He's a nice guy," Ichigo says in a quiet voice to Rukia as Ukitake makes his way over to Ichigo.

Rukia watches as Ukitake explains the gate to Ichigo and his friends. When Ukitake appears to have something to give to Ichigo, Rukia steps away and is accosted by Inoue as her Captain talks to Ichigo. Rukia thinks the dress that Ishida made is a beautiful dress. She looks over at Ichigo.

_I will miss him while we're apart. I can't wait until the day I can come back to the living world and show him how strong I truly am._


	75. As Requested: Urahara's Mirrors 7

**A/N-I hope you all enjoy this series, since I keep getting requests about it, and I wanted to make sure I added this one in while I had the idea in my mind. I hope you all enjoy it! This one is dedicated to the one who requested it, as always!**

_Urahara's Mirrors 7_

"We finished in time to make it to the kids graduation from the Central Spirit Technique Institute," Rukia says with a relieved sigh as she grabs Ichigo's arm.

"Can't I get a second to relax?" Ichigo grumbles with a small smile as his tiny terror of a wife yanks him out of his chair.

"You can relax once we're in our seats for the ceremony." Rukia tells him with a short voice, and Ichigo sighs again.

"If I had known that being a captain involved this much paperwork, I'd have told them where they could shove their captain's position. This is a joke." Ichigo says, spewing his normal speech after many hours of paperwork.

"You love the notoriety that comes with it, you big liar." Rukia says with a smile as she pulls him out of the office.

"The kids and my sisters all graduated the six year curriculum in one year." Ichigo says with a sigh. "I want them all in our division." Ichigo says in a soft voice.

"Everyone knows your feelings on that, but I think it would be okay if Ayako ended up with Ukitake." Rukia tells him in a soft voice.

"I want them all with us." Ichigo says stubbornly. "I couldn't do anything about what happened in the real world, but I can sure as shit watch their backs in the fights to come." Ichigo says in a near shout.

"It was a freak accident, you can't even try to blame yourself for that." Rukia says with a scoff.

"It was a nightmare. I still have dreams about it." Ichigo grumbles. Rukia sighs.

"I know you do. I sleep next to you, remember?" Rukia tells him in a soft voice.

_It had been unreal. It had been so unbelievable that they both still have trouble believing it now. Yuzu and Karin had been at the house babysitting for Ichigo and Rukia who left the house for a two night hollow mission not too far away from Karakura Town. The fifteen year old twins and thirteen year old youngest son didn't really need a babysitter, but Rukia and Ichigo had felt better about leaving them in his sisters hands rather than all alone._

_Rukia had left her gigai at home, but without Chappy inside of it since the temporary soul seemed to annoy the hell out of her kids. Ichigo had left his body next to Rukia's gigai on the bed. They had kissed their children good bye and when they had arrived back home two days later, they found the remnants of a plane crash where their home used to stand. Karin, Yuzu, Akio, Ayako, and Yukio all stood there in front of the house with their chains attached to their chests to wait for Rukia and Ichigo to arrive back. _

_They had refused another Shinigami who had arrived to help them, and had insisted that Rukia and Ichigo be the ones to send them to Soul Society. The Shinigami had stood guard until he saw Rukia and Ichigo arrive back._

_Ichigo had been horrified as everything sunk in. What were the chances that the plane would crash into the home and kill them all? Even Ichigo's body had been inside the house._

"I want them with us." Ichigo says again, with a deep scowl. Rukia sighs.

"Stop thinking about that night. We're all still together, and we're all still very close! Isn't that all that really matters?" Rukia asks him softly.

"Together? They've been in the dorms of school for the past year every night. They didn't get to grow up and experience the joys of marriage and having kids!" Ichigo says in an aching voice.

"They can still do those things here, though I doubt Ayako or Akio will ever find anybody. They're too close to one another to let anybody who's not family into their tight little circle." Rukia says with a shake of her head.

The twins were practically inseparable. Akio always scared off any guy that showed the slightest interest in Ayako, and he brushed off any girls that paid him any attention. He would train constantly with his sister and they have always been best friends and partners. Rukia wonders if either of them will ever become interested in romance.

"It must be some sort of twin thing. Karin and Yuzu have always been very close too." Ichigo tells her as he smiles at her.

"I don't think we should worry about our kids having kids yet anyways, we should be more concerned about the fact that we are going to be having our fourth child." Rukia says, finally breaking the news to him.

Ichigo's gaze shoots down at his wife and his eyes widen in amazement.

"Are you serious? We're having a baby? Rukia!" Ichigo grabs her up into a big hug, and quite publicly too. He lands a kiss on her forehead and looks at her proudly.

"I confirmed it this morning with Captain Unohana before I made my way to the office. I knew if I told you earlier, there would be no way you'd be able to concentrate." Rukia says with a brilliant shining smile.

"You make me so happy. You know that, don't you?" Ichigo whispers with wonder in his eyes. Having children has been such a blessing, and now his wife is pregnant again.

"Of course I know! I know you better than anyone! Now we need to step on it so that we can get some good seats!" Rukia says, and Ichigo grabs her up in his arms and grins at her.

"I can get us there in no time. You just relax. You have a lot of work ahead of you, being pregnant again and all." Ichigo says in a husky voice before he zooms at top speed to the ceremonial hall attached to the Central Spirit Technique Institute.

Rukia grins as they _do_ arrive at their destination in practically no time at all. Ichigo strides towards the front, where he had a couple of subordinates hold seats in the front row in case he and his wife were running late, and they quickly scamper out of Ichigo's way when he gives them a look. It clearly says _beat it_.

"The front row, Ichigo?" Rukia asks with a big pleased smile as she looks at her husband who is sitting next to her with a smile.

"You wouldn't have been happy with anything else, right?" Ichigo asks her with a grin. Rukia's ecstatic smile is all he needs to feel completely content.

He sits back in his chair and wonders what their next child will look like.

"You're always making me so happy, it's been like that for so long now, and I really am very happy," Rukia's voice sounds from next to him.

"Do you want a boy or a girl?" Ichigo asks her with a sideways grin. Rukia smiles back.

"I'll be happy with either one." Rukia assures him with a big grin.

"I don't really have a preference now either, we have two boys and one girl, so I guess we should be hoping for another girl." Ichigo says slowly as he contemplates another girl that looks like his wife.

"I think we should wait until the kids get to enjoy their graduation before we go and tell them." Rukia says quietly, and Ichigo nods at her.

"Okay." Ichigo says.

They sit throughout the ceremony and Rukia has to smack Ichigo awake near the end of it since he dozed off and started to snore. Ichigo immediately sat up and gave her a contrite look, though she couldn't blame him. These types of things are long and boring, but now his sisters and their kids are being called up and assigned to their future squads.

Ichigo sits forward and smiles in relief that his letter had been listened to. All of them have been assigned to Ichigo and Rukia's division.

After the ceremony, they have a huge celebratory Kurosaki family hug and everyone hugs everyone else as tightly as they can. Akio and Yukio both have full time released zanpakutous like their father, and Ayako is the only one who can actually keep hers sealed, even though she wields similar power to her brothers when she's in her released mode. Her released sword is black and white, and her attack is a combination of slashing attack with an ice wave as its central power.

Akio's zanpakutou is almost identical to his father's except it isn't quite as wide. Yukio's is even thinner, but it is also the length of his body. They're both definitely Ichigo's sons as Rukia beams at them.

Ayako and Akio are standing next to one another and Ayako is their only child who wears her zanpakutou at her side, like her mother. It's scary, the similarities of their sons to their father and their daughter to her mother.

"Congratulations!" Rukia says to everyone, including Karin and Yuzu.

Karin wears her zanpakutou on her back, but horizontally, and while it's wide, it isn't really very long. It is however brimming with that familiar Kurosaki power that seems to have passed across the generations. Released, it becomes a ball and chain type weapon, and she is extremely proficient with it.

Yuzu wears her zanpakutou at her side and it resembles a long knife more than a sword. When she releases, grows into a long double edged sword that can spew out fire. It's very similar in fact, to Hinamori Momo's zanpakutou.

"Thank you!" Ayako and Akio say at the same time. Yukio grins.

"Thanks, Mom." Yukio says with a shake of his head. His siblings have been like that for as long as he can remember.

"Thank you, Rukia-chan!" Yuzu says with a smile, and Karin nods.

"Somehow I doubt that it's coincidence that we're all in the same division, Ichi-ni." Karin says as she pins her brother with a ferocious glare. She could understand his kids, but why was he still acting like he needed to protect her? She had been hoping to go to Zaraki's division. She really likes his attitude.

Ichigo ignores his sister and instead he beams at his kids.

"I'm lucky to have such talent among my division. We should have someone take a picture." Ichigo says, as he pulls his kids all around he and his wife. Rukia hugs her daughter and Ayako grins. Ichigo throws his arm around his oldest son, and Akio puts his hand on Yukio's shoulder. Karin and Yuzu kneel down next to Yukio. Rukia hands the camera to a passerby and requests they take the picture.

"We'll be welcoming then into the division tomorrow," Rukia says with a big happy smile when everyone walks off to get refreshments.

"And you'll be doing deskwork for quite some time, my dear." Ichigo says as he gives his wife a look. Rukia sighs.

"I was wondering how long it would take you to say that." Rukia grumbles at him.

"No arguing with the captain." Ichigo says, using his position as leverage to get what he wants. Rukia sighs again. She doesn't like it, but she understands it. She looks up at him and gives him a nod.

"I have the duty of protecting another future powerful Kurosaki, of course I won't be rushing into any dangerous situations for quite some time." Rukia finally concedes. Ichigo pulls her into his side.

"Except in the bedroom. I'm always dangerous there." Ichigo tells her against her ear. Rukia smiles.

"I live for that kind of danger." Rukia replies as she smiles with happiness.

_The entire family together. We have the power to make the division the best that has ever existed. We have such an amazing family._

**A/N-Rukia was Ichigo's lieutenant, since I was made aware that I didn't specify that :)**


	76. Assignment

**A/N-I am working on several requests, but I hope you all enjoy one of my own in between, when I thought up the idea I just had to write it before I lost it, so I hope you all like it!**

_Assignment_

Ichigo chews on his pencil and he turns pink when he considers what his paper would look like if he writes the truth down. Ichigo sighs. The assignment is a lot harder than it actually should be.

The assignment is to write two hundred and fifty words on where you see yourself when you're thirty years old. Ichigo has no idea whether or not they'll be forced to read their assignments out loud or whether or not they'll just be handing them in.

Rukia has been given the same assignment and she had actually let out a little snort when she heard what the paper was supposed to be on. For her, that was close to one hundred and twenty years ago and she had been about the size of Yachiru back then. She hadn't even met Renji at that point yet.

Rukia has no way of taking the assignment seriously, because for her, things wouldn't be all that different in fourteen years. She'll still be a Shinigami and her mission will still be to kill hollows. Rukia finally makes a choice on how she'll handle the silly human assignment, but she has no idea how unsettled her partner is due to the subject matter.

Rukia smiles when she gets started, and she uses fantasy and creativity to make one hell of an interesting paper. She finishes before Ichigo even gets started. She's just yanked a manga off of his shelf when his gaze suddenly settles on her.

"Did you finish the assignment already?" Ichigo asks her suspiciously. Rukia settles onto his bed and winks at him.

"Of course, slowpoke! If you don't hurry, you'll be working on your homework all night long. It's not that difficult of an assignment for you, is it? You're at least human. You should have a good idea of where you see yourself at the age of thirty." Rukia tells him before she opens the manga, and gives him silence to do his work.

"Let me see your paper." Ichigo says suddenly, and Rukia turns red as she sets the manga down.

"Why?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo doesn't miss her embarrassed expression.

"What in the hell did you write? Please tell me you didn't start talking about Soul Society in your paper." Ichigo says as his eyes widen with worry. Rukia scoffs at him.

"I'm not an idiot." Rukia says, still a bit pink at the idea of Ichigo reading her fairy tale of an assignment.

"Why won't you show it to me?" Ichigo asks as he pins her with an intense stare.

"You've never approved of my embellishments in the past, why would you start appreciating them now?" Rukia asks him before she yanks her gaze from him and back to the manga. Ichigo sighs. He doesn't even want to consider what kinds of lies Rukia might come up with just to finish the damned paper, but she was right about one thing. It shouldn't be as hard as he's making it. He decides to write his true feelings without divulging any private detail.

He bends over his paper and concentrates until he's finished, about a half hour later. He glances at Rukia who is still in his bed, totally engrossed in the manga, and he blushes a little bit. He's tempted to throw out his paper and write as many lies as Rukia probably wrote in hers, but instead he shoves it in his folder and forgets about it until class.

_The Next Day…_

"Alright class, the assignment I had you do yesterday, I want you to present it orally to the class." The sensei says with a huge smile on her face. Plenty of her students turn completely white at that announcement, including Rukia, Ichigo, and Inoue.

"You didn't tell us that!" Ichigo says loudly as he jumps out of his seat with his cheeks suddenly red. Several of the other students in the class nod their agreement with Ichigo on his little outburst.

"I'm sorry to surprise you all like this, but this is an assignment I expect each and everyone of you to read out loud to your classmates. Kurosaki, since you had such an excitable reaction, how about we hear yours first? That way by the end of the class everyone will have forgotten about yours." The sensei says with a big smile, and Ichigo gulps nervously before he gives his teacher a nasty glare.

She just keeps smiling though and Ichigo yanks his report from the folder. Everyone in the classroom is focused on Ichigo as he begins.

"In thirty years I imagine myself to be a father and husband. I see myself having a decent job, and I would be involved with my family. I always imagined having a large family with the girl of my dreams." Ichigo says before he clears his throat and the teacher nods and smiles.

"Go on," she encourages him with a grin. Ichigo glares at her again before he continues.

"I imagine I will have already been married for many years, since I think I already know the girl I want to marry. I hope my marriage is as great as my parents' marriage was before my mother died. I think I'll have my own house and nice cars, and I'd like to have a pet of some sort. I thought about how it might be nice to have a dog for my kids, or maybe a rabbit." Ichigo says as he turns a bit red after having said all of that. He doesn't miss Rukia's quiet and surprised squeak at the mention of a rabbit.

"Hmmm." The teacher says as Ichigo takes a long breath to continue.

"I hope to have a good enough job that my wife would not need to work, even in the beginning before we have kids. I imagine I would have at least one kid who is around five or so, at the age of thirty, and I never thought I would move too far from Karakura Town." Ichigo says as he stares at his paper, wishing he had followed his intuition the night before and lied.

"Ah," The teacher says as Ichigo takes another deep breath.

"I thought I might even help coach the kids baseball or soccer team. I want to take my family on a vacation at least once year, and I want to take them to all kinds of different places. I think by the time I'm thirty, I'll have even visited another country by that time. I'd like to see what is outside of Japan, and I would like having my family with me when I do that." Ichigo says as he takes a big relieved sigh and sinks back into his chair as he stares at his desk.

_Why did I write that about the damned rabbit? I just had to add that bit of truth in there didn't I?_

Ichigo tunes out most of the other oral reports, including Inoue's and Tatsuki's. It's best since Inoue admitted that she hopes to be married to a boy from class when she read her assignment. He's too busy being mortified that he admitted he thinks he knows the girl he'll marry, and that he wants to get his kids a damned rabbit.

When it's Rukia's turn, however, Ichigo starts to pay attention. Rukia blushes when she notices Ichigo's actually looking at her as she stands to read her speech. She's suddenly very embarrassed by what she wrote. She had been a bit facetious, but she's not sure anybody else will be very amused with what she wrote.

"I think when I'm thirty, I will have the most adoring husband who cherishes me beyond words. We will have a large family, since I wish to have at least six kids. I hope to have at least two by the time I'm thirty. I also hope to star in some plays, and I like to think that I'll still be doing that when I turn thirty." Rukia starts out, with her cheeks a bit pink since it only gets worse. She sees Ichigo's stunned expression at what she's said this far and she hesitates.

"Go on, Kuchiki-san." The teacher says as she grins a bit wider. She of course has noticed how Rukia glanced at Ichigo and how engrossed Ichigo seems in what she has to say.

"I expect my husband to make enough money to be able to afford servants, because I deserve to be waited on hand and foot. I will have all kinds of expensive jewelry from my husband, and he will deny me nothing. I expect life to be fun and exciting, and I expect my husband and I to always live to the fullest, always trying new things, or eating at new places." Rukia looks up and wishes she hadn't. Several of her classmates are gaping at what just came out of her mouth, and Ichigo looks like he's struggling not to smile.

"I see…" The teacher says with huge eyes, and Rukia quickly gets back to reading her paper.

"I want to try many new and exciting things while I'm here in this world. I don't ever expect to be bored. I will have a beautiful home, with the most tasteful furnishings, and I think my bedroom will be a rabbit themed heaven, at least that's how I imagine it." Rukia says as she turns bright red.

It seems several people have noticed that both Ichigo and Rukia's reports had some sort of mention of a rabbit. Ichigo had guffawed when he'd heard what she had to say about her future bedroom.

"Go on," the teacher says as she tries not to chuckle. She sees Kurosaki is trying really hard not to burst out into laughter at Kuchiki's report.

"I see myself reading my children to sleep, and making books seem really fun as I change my voice for different characters. I imagine kissing my kids goodnight and falling asleep next to the most magnificent man. I will be happy with my life, since my husband will be wrapped around my finger and I'll have anything that I ask for." Rukia says and she quickly takes her seat and focuses her gaze out of the window.

A few more students have their reports, but Rukia feels so mortified that she wrote those things. If she had known it would be an assignment to be read out loud to the class, she would have thought much more carefully before she quickly wrote her paper.

As she and Ichigo head out for lunch, he gives her a quizzical sideways look.

"Wrapped around your finger eh?" Ichigo asks with a lifted eyebrow, and Rukia blushes.

"Shut your trap!" Rukia snaps at him before she refuses to look back at him for a minute. When she finally does, she sees him watching her out of the corner of his eyes.

"A rabbit themed bedroom?" Ichigo asks her when he sees her peeking at him. Rukia blushes deeply and Ichigo smiles at that reaction. He hadn't expected her to say that, even though it shouldn't have come as a surprise.

"What about you? Who's the girl of your dreams that you already know?" Rukia demands in a low voice as she puts all of the pressure onto him. Ichigo turns red and finally stops looking at her.

"You don't know?" Ichigo asks in a soft voice as he shoves his free hand into his pocket nervously. Rukia's head jerks towards him at that comment.

"Should I?" Rukia asks him as she searches his face for some sort of answer, but he still won't meet her gaze.

"You mean…it's not obvious?" Ichigo asks her with a bit of shock sounding in his voice.

"I can do a lot of things, but reading minds isn't one of them." Rukia informs him as she waits for him to reveal what she really wants to know.

"Who do you think it is?" Ichigo asks her as he finally lets his eyes slide over to meet hers. Rukia stares into his eyes for a second before she shakes her head.

"I don't know. Tell me." Rukia says in a soft voice. She doesn't want to guess it's herself only to have him tell her that she's wrong.

"Idiot. You already know." Ichigo tells her in a low voice, and Rukia feels the corners of her mouth slide up.

"I do?" Rukia asks him in a soft voice even as she smiles. Ichigo blushes and turns away from her. She seems to be enjoying this far too much.

"I shouldn't have to say anything." Ichigo grumbles at her as they spot their friends.

"You'd better tell me now or I'll announce loudly who I think it is when we sit with them." Rukia threatens Ichigo and his eyes widen. He quickly grabs her arm and leads her away from his friends.

"We're eating alone today." Ichigo says in a short voice, and Rukia's mouth falls open.

"Damn, you're stubborn." Rukia says with a sigh. Ichigo fights a grin.

"Look who's talking," Ichigo says as he gives her a pointed look.

"Why won't you tell me who it is?" Rukia asks him again, and she suddenly realizes that Ichigo just led her past a hedge and pulling on her arm for her to sit down.

"Jeez Rukia, it's you!" Ichigo finally sputters with a bit of annoyance in his voice. Now that they're alone though, it's not so bad. Rukia's eyes widen and he can't help but feel relieved at the smile that spreads across her face.

"As long as you can put up with a bedroom decked out with Chappy…" Rukia says with a giggle, and Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"You can have whatever you want." Ichigo grumbles, but he doesn't add the rest of what he's thinking.

_As long as I have you._


	77. As Requested: Inheritance 4

_**A/N-I had a request to add another chapter to the Inheritance series, and I happily agreed as always, for the obvious reasons. This is dedicated to the one that requested it, I hope you all enjoy it.**_

_Inheritance 4_

When the path to the royal dimension opens and the familiar bright light shines down, Renji excuses himself from his work and uses shunpo to be able to greet the royal couple immediately as they arrive.

They look magnificent as always, but because of the light, Renji can't see them very well. When Rukia and Ichigo step onto Soukyoku Hill and the dimension closes up, Renji's eyes widen as he immediately notices Rukia's delicate condition.

"Renji!" Rukia says with a shout of happy laughter, and she runs over to hug him. Renji hugs her back and then steps back to take a good look at her.

"Rukia! You're expecting?" Renji says as he eyes her middle.

"Don't act so surprised, you knew we were trying." Ichigo says as a satisfied grin slides across his face. Renji grins as he looks back and forth between the pair.

"Congratulations!" Renji says with a look of awe.

"Did you know there's a woman in the royal dimension who is even more talented than Unohana when it comes to healing?" Rukia asks Renji with amazement in her voice. Renji's eyes widen at hearing that.

"That's comforting." Renji says with a grin, even though he's shocked there's someone even more talented than Unohana.

The only other one who he thought could rival Unohana was Inoue Orihime, and that was only due to her exposure to Ichigo's reiatsu.

"It's my grandmother. My father's mother." Ichigo says with a surprised shake of his head. "She introduced herself to us when we first met her, but we only found out about being related to her when Rukia got pregnant and my mother called her to tend to Rukia."

"She's as silly as Ichigo's father is too," Rukia says with a chuckle.

"Yeah, now I know where the streak of insanity that runs in our family comes from," Ichigo says with a shake of his head.

"I hope it bypasses this little angel." Rukia says as she massages her abdomen.

"You're out of luck, if your kid ends up anything like your husband. I've always thought he was a bit insane." Renji says with a grin, and Ichigo scoffs.

"You're one to talk." Ichigo says as he rolls his eyes.

"Abarai Renji, you are not supposed to insult the King." The captain commander's voice is low but firm. Ichigo rolls his eyes again.

"Lighten up. Renji is a friend of the family." Ichigo says before he turns his attention back to Renji.

"We're making the usual stops but only after we visit the living world. My family will want to know that Rukia is expecting." Ichigo says in a fairly loud voice. Rukia looks over at the captain commander.

"Can you arrange to have our reiatsu sealed a bit before we leave?" She asks him with a beautiful smile. The captain commander bows and his lieutenant starts to bark out orders.

In under an hour, Rukia and Ichigo's reiatsu has been drastically reduced, but it doesn't make a huge difference since their reiatsu is so abundant in the first place.

"This is the best we can manage." The captain commander bows his head and Ichigo shrugs.

"Thanks." Ichigo says. "If you see Byakuya, let him know we'll be stopping over when we get back from the living world." Ichigo adds and the captain commander bows his head in acquiescence.

"We're off!" Rukia says in an excited voice as Ichigo grabs her up in his arms and zooms over to the Senkai gate.

When they arrive at home, Ichigo is shocked to find that the slash attack that he'd left in the living world has filled with water, since it went straight past the river and into the ocean. There had to be dozens of bridges built to accommodate the new huge and wide crack that appeared in the earth so suddenly.

It has been labeled an act of God by many.

"Jeez." Rukia says as she stares at it. Ichigo scratches his head.

"It's not like I knew it would be that powerful." Ichigo says with a sheepish voice. "Is there anything we can do to fix it?" Ichigo asks and Rukia rolls her eyes.

"Maybe if we had thought about that last time, but I doubt it. I wonder how far that attack goes." Rukia says in a thoughtful voice as Ichigo's father and sisters bust out of the house since they can sense Ichigo and Rukia's reiatsu.

"You've come back!" Isshin says jovially, and his eyes water with happy tears when he sees Rukia's delicate condition as she turns to face him.

Isshin grabs Rukia up into a big hug and lifts her high into the air like she's a child. Karin rolls her eyes and gives her brother a dirty look.

"Ichi-ni. That slash attack that you made, went clear to the Pacific ocean." Karin says as she glares at him. "It's bad enough that it starts right in front of our house. People have accused us of having something to do with it." Karin says, as she crosses her arms in annoyance. Ichigo lets out an embarrassed chuckle.

"Sorry about that." Ichigo says, as he scratches his head. Karin glares at him some more.

"You don't even know ecological results of your actions?" Karin asks him in a near shout.

So many freshwater fish died in the connecting rivers to Ichigo's slash attack as the saltwater filled into the freshwater rivers. He's lucky that the slash didn't run into Lake Biwa. Only sixteen homes had been destroyed and miraculously no people died from Ichigo's attack.

"Let it go, Karin." Isshin says as he finally sets Rukia down. Ichigo grins at his father who winks back at him.

That's the moment when another Vasto Lorde makes an entrance. Ichigo glances at Rukia.

"Aren't there only supposed to be a few of these things? Why do they always appear when we're here?" Ichigo asks with a scowl. Rukia rolls her eyes at him.

"It's _because_ we're here. I'll take care of this one." Rukia says. Ichigo cringes, and he hears Karin in the background.

"No! Oh hell no, not again! No, no, no, no, no!" Karin is chanting as she covers her eyes with her hands and trembles in fear of what's to come. Yuzu puts her arm around her sister.

"It'll be okay, Karin-chan!" Yuzu says with a cheerful grin. They look up when they hear Rukia's voice.

"Way of binding, number one! Paralysis!" Rukia says, and the Vasto Lorde can't hide his surprise as his eyes widen and he is unable to break free of the weakest binding spell that she knows.

"Now what?" Ichigo asks, as he looks at his wife. Rukia grins at him.

"Ichigo. Toss that Vasto Lorde as high up into the air as you can." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo grins and he throws the Vasto Lorde extremely high up into the air. Rukia releases her zanpakutou, without calling out its name. She concentrates on where the Vasto Lorde is now falling back towards the earth and she sends a White Ripple its way, as it comes down. Karin and Yuzu's eyes widen as Rukia's shikai breaks apart with the Vasto Lorde destroyed and comes down like hail.

Rukia cringes when she hears several windows break as the ice falls and Ichigo stands there chuckling.

"Next time, why don't you two let me handle it. Even with your power sealed, it's just too much around the house." Isshin says as he stares at the streets which are now covered in ice.

"It's freaking July! There shouldn't be any snow or ice around here!" Karin finally blows up as she stares at the destruction.

"Karin-chan!" Yuzu says, and Rukia just stares around and realizes that Karin is right.

"There has to be a way to fix this. I can try to melt it with Blue Fire." Rukia says and Karin flies over to Rukia, stands in front of her, and holds her arms out .

"Don't even think about it!" Karin shouts at the top of her lungs. Ichigo can't help it. He crumbles to the ground and starts to laugh so hard that no noise is coming out. His sister looks pretty determined to stop Rukia from releasing any more reiatsu.

Isshin starts to laugh too, since Rukia looks really disconcerted at Karin's reaction.

"Karin-chan!" Yuzu says again, but there is no calming Karin down as she glares back and forth between her brother and her sister-in-law.

"How much do the two of you have to destroy around here before you're satisfied? I'd rather have melting ice on the streets than to have all of our neighbor's houses catch on fire!" Karin says as she breathes deeply. Ichigo finally starts to get a hold of himself.

"I'm sorry." Rukia says with a strange look on her face as she surveys the ice. "Maybe I can will it to melt faster." Rukia says in a soft voice and she closes her eyes. Everyone's eyes widen as the ice instantly melts and water starts draining like it normally would.

Karin notices that neighbors are coming outside and watching with awe the phenomenon of the ice melting immediately like that.

"Thanks." Karin says with a scowl. She knows she shouldn't have probably yelled at Rukia while she's pregnant, but Karin had felt very strongly about her opinion.

"We're going to go tell our friends the news and then we'll head back to Soul Society. We don't want to attract hollows any longer than necessary." Ichigo tells his family as he's finally calmed down from his earlier laughter.

Rukia and Ichigo are pleasantly surprised that their friends faces don't hit the pavement this time, although not one of their friends can do anything but sit in their presence. Rukia and Ichigo find Ishida, Inoue, and Sado all at Sado's house where they had ordered a pizza.

Ishida of course had a snide comment about the new river that appeared in Japan right in front of the Kurosaki residence, though not on their property. Ichigo had grumbled at him to shut up when he brought that up.

"We call it the Kurosaki River." Inoue had said with a laugh.

"Did you all see ice falling from the sky earlier?" Ichigo asked after being told that his friends named the damned river after him. Ishida nodded.

"It was you, wasn't it." Ishida had said, rather than asked Rukia. She had nodded with embarrassment.

"I'm sure we'll see it on the news tonight." Sado had said quietly.

Everyone congratulates them on their pregnancy, and the happy couple smile in thanks. Rukia and Ichigo don't visit for too long, since their reiatsu is still difficult for their friends to deal with, but they stay long enough to feel like they actually got to visit with their friends.

When they get back to Soul Society, the spiritual seals are removed immediately and the couple go by way of shunpo to tell Byakuya the good news, even though he already heard about it from Renji. He's standing at the door to greet them when they arrive since he felt them approaching.

"Ni-sama!" Rukia yells happily when Ichigo sets her down. She runs over to her brother and smiles up at him.

"Congratulations, Rukia." Byakuya says as he eyes her pregnant condition.

"Thank you! You're going to be an uncle." Rukia says softly, and she grins when she sees the corners of Byakuya's mouth tremble like he's trying to stop himself from smiling, but he finally gives up the fight and gives her a big genuine smile.

"I'm happy to hear it." Byakuya tells her softly before he looks at Ichigo and gives him a nod or bow of respect. It was halfway between the two, but Ichigo doesn't call him on it.

"Thanks, Byakuya." Ichigo says with a grin as he watches his wife smile happily.

"You don't have to worry either, since Ichigo's grandmother is a top notch healer and will be taking care of me and our future bundle of joy." Rukia says with her eyes lit up in happiness.

"You're going to the living world to have your pregnancy monitored?" Byakuya asks in horror, causing Rukia and Ichigo to laugh.

"Of course not, my grandmother doesn't live there." Ichigo says through his laughter.

She's a part of Division Zero." Rukia explains, and Byakuya's eyes widen.

"That's a good thing." Byakuya finally says after a pause.

"I might not see you again until after our baby is born." Rukia tells Byakuya in a soft voice, and he nods in understanding. Rukia has a small physique and she may be most comfortable if she isn't moving around between the dimensions.

"We'll definitely bring the baby, after it's born though, my family will want to see it." Ichigo says with a proud smile lighting up his face.

Byakuya looks back and forth between the very happy couple and he feels very relieved that Rukia is with a man that adores the way she deserves to be adored.

"We're going to make a couple of quick stops and then head back." Rukia tells Byakuya who nods and gives her a warm look. Rukia and Ichigo turn to walk away, holding hands.

"I think Hisana would be very proud," Byakuya says in a soft voice as they walk away. He says it so quietly that they don't hear him.

Rukia and Ichigo go and visit Ukitake first, who seems to be thrilled about the happy news. He gives Rukia a huge smile and he bows deeply to them.

Ukitake starts to cough the moment he stands, and he covers his mouth quickly. Ichigo looks alarmed as blood obviously came out when he coughed. Ukitake quickly grabs a tissue and apologizes for his rudeness, but Ichigo just takes a step forward and sets his hand on Ukitake's head.

Rukia's mouth drops open as a healing reiatsu unlike what she's seen in the past engulfs Ukitake's head, and his eyes are wide as he stares up at Ichigo. Ichigo closes his eyes and concentrates very hard. When he steps away he gives Ukitake a very concerned look.

"I want you to tell me if you experience a cough like that again when I come back here." Ichigo tells him. Ukitake just nods his head. Whatever Ichigo just did, he feels healthy beyond what he's felt in hundreds of years.

"I'm so sorry." Ukitake apologizes again, but Rukia shakes her head.

"Stop apologizing. You are a very important person to both of us." Rukia tells him in a soft voice. Ichigo nods and grins, but he takes a few steps back. He always feels like he should leave them alone since this man is her former superior officer.

"I'm going to go say hello to Kenpachi. You can stay here and visit longer with Ukitake-san if you would like." Ichigo tells Rukia, who nods and smiles.

"I would like that very much." Rukia tells Ichigo.

When Ichigo finds Kenpachi, Yachiru pops up and immediately starts to smile.

"Icchy-sama!" Yachiru belts out, and Ichigo raises an eyebrow at that one.

"Yo, Ichigo. You finally came back." Kenpachi says with a bit of a chuckle. Ichigo grins at him.

"It hasn't been all that long." Ichigo tells him as he crosses his arms and grins at the man.

"So how are things going?" Kenpachi asks with an interested gleam in his eyes.

"Great. Rukia's pregnant." Ichigo says, and Yachiru starts hopping from one shoulder to another, over Zaraki's head as she claps and cheers.

"Yah-ho! Yippee! Go Icchy!" Yachiru cheers as she's still leaping over Zaraki's head back and forth between his shoulders. Kenpachi grins. He always likes it when Yachiru is in a good mood.

"Thanks." Ichigo says a bit sheepishly.

He visits with Kenpachi for a little while longer before he hunts Rukia down. She's never hard to find, he has her reiatsu pinpointed immediately.

They meet up to go and visit Ganju and Kuukaku before they head on back to their own dimension.

On the walk, Rukia gives Ichigo a questioning look.

"What did you do to Captain Ukitake?" Rukia asks him quietly. Ichigo nods.

"I was just testing out my own healing powers. I hope I helped him. My grandmother started giving me tips a couple of weeks ago. I think I have the hang of how healing is done. It can't be too hard." Ichigo says, thinking that Inoue is skilled with it, and she can't even stand in their presence. Rukia's eyes widened. She hopes Ichigo has helped her former captain too.

They are warmly welcomed into Kuukaku's home, which Rukia had gotten the direction of from Ukitake when she had visited with him. Ganju looked pretty happy to see the pair as well.

"You had better bring the baby to see us when it is born." Kuukaku had said in a threatening voice to Ichigo who had ducked his head.

"I will, I always stop by when I'm in Soul Society." Ichigo had assured her without meeting her eyes. All you had to do was look at her wrong to earn a fist to the face.

Rukia and Ichigo finally head back to the royal dimension and it seems like most of the Shinigami have come to see them off.

Everyone watches as Ichigo throws his arm around Rukia and guides her back to the royal dimension. Masaki is waiting for them to arrive back she gives Ichigo the same proud smile that she always does.

"Welcome back!" Masaki says to both of them with a huge smile. Ichigo grins as he pulls Rukia closer to him.

"It's good to be back, Mom." Ichigo says with a grin, and then he kisses Rukia's forehead, causing her to turn pink and smile.

_Life is perfect._


	78. As Requested: After Negacion

**A/N-I had a request to add in more scenes that could fit in the true storyline of bleach, much like the stories I did following Kuukaku's party. This chapter is dedicated to the person who requested I do more. **

**I hope you enjoy it, this takes place right after the Vaizards tell Rukia to take Ichigo home to recuperate since he can't be around their reiatsu in his weakened condition. **

_After Negacion_

Rukia bites her lip as all but one of the Vaizards head back into their hideout. The one who had saved her from Grimmjow's deadly cero is the only one still left outside. Rukia bows her head gratefully to him.

"Thank you so much for stopping that enemy when you did. You saved me." Rukia tells him in a soft voice. Shinji scoffs and gives her an almost angry look, which Rukia doesn't understand at all.

"I didn't really do it for you. I did it for Ichigo." Shinji tells her with narrowed eyes. Rukia's eyes widen a bit.

"What?" Rukia asks in confusion.

"You're the anchor that keeps him tied down as a Shinigami. Without you, he would have already turned completely into a hollow. You have held his heart in his chest." Shinji tells Rukia. He watches as a strange warm look appears on her face, with a hint of a smile.

_She really is a sight for sore eyes, unlike Hiyori._

"Huh?" Rukia asks with a completely puzzled look on her face.

"I saw it earlier, when you saved him. He's very important to you." Shinji says to her, instead of asking her.

"Yes." Rukia whispers as she stares down at Ichigo's wounded body.

"When I took a peek at his soul, I could see you, all wrapped up in it. That is the only reason that I saved you." Shinji tells her before he turns and heads into the hideout where the other Vaizards already are. Rukia stares after him with a gaping mouth.

"This has been a strange day." Rukia mutters as she bends over to gather Ichigo up in her arms.

She ends up holding him in a hugging position with his head on her shoulder, much in the same way Yoruichi had run with him after knocking him out on the bridge in Soul Society. Rukia leaps into the sky to head for Ichigo's home, when she hears him muttering near her ear.

"I'm so glad that you're okay, Rukia." Ichigo says, clearly enough for Rukia to understand him. She squeezes him in her arms a little bit at those warm words.

"I was careless." Rukia mutters. "I didn't expect him to break out of my White Ripple." Rukia tells him in a regretful voice.

"You're okay. That's all that matters." Ichigo croaks at her before he passes out on her shoulder again, and Rukia can't help but to smile a little bit at that.

"I could say the same for you." Rukia whispers softly, even though he's out of it and can't hear her now.

When she gets him settled into his bed, he opens his eyes again and she looks at him with concern.

"You can rest now. Work on feeling better," Rukia whispers to him with the worry quite evident in her eyes.

"That was too close, Rukia." Ichigo tells her with a pained look in his eyes.

"I know. I came close to losing you." Rukia mutters as she gazes out of the window.

"I wasn't talking about that. I was talking about how close I came to losing you." Ichigo tells her, and it's obvious that it's costing him a lot of energy to have this conversation with her.

"You need to sleep." Rukia tells him softly, with a very caring look on her face. Ichigo actually manages a grin, even though he doesn't say what he's thinking.

_I'm so glad that you're alive, that I could just kiss you_.

Rukia watches his eyes close and she knows he's passed out again. She takes a deep breath even as she realizes Shinji wasn't at all wrong.

_He'll be okay. He's not dead, even if he is injured. We both nearly got caught by those damned cero attacks. We're lucky to be alive_.

Rukia can't help but to be drawn to Ichigo, they've been through so much together in such a short amount of time.

_What did that man mean, when he said I was wrapped up in Ichigo's soul?_

Rukia realizes she's having strange feelings as she stares at Ichigo.

"You're wrapped up in my soul too, Ichigo." Rukia whispers before she leaves to go get her gigai so that she can inform his family of his return. She smiles on her way out when she realizes a very important fact about Ichigo.

_He's always so sweet and sentimental when we have a close call_.


	79. Yoruichi's Information

**_A/N-This may be OOC, but I liked the idea when I had it! Enjoy!_**

**_What would happen if Rukia learned a couple of things that she might not have been aware of before?_ **

_Yoruichi's Information_

Rukia grumbles when she arrives back in the living world and it's still the middle of the day. That means Ichigo is in class. Normally she would go and crash his classroom, but she decides to wait this time until he's done with school for the day. Rukia walks around and enjoys her stroll around Karakura Town.

"It sure is a beautiful town." Rukia says as she takes in a deep breath of fresh air.

Rukia smiles whenever she passes a place that she and Ichigo have gone to kill hollows in the past. Just recalling those times, make her heart jump a bit, not that anybody besides herself is actually aware of that fact.

"Kuchiki-san." A male voice says, and Rukia flinches in surprise as she glances around. Rukia smiles when she sees Yoruichi, in her cat form, right behind her.

"You surprised me, when did you appear behind me?" Rukia says, before she scoops up the black cat in her arms, and walks her over to a public bench. Rukia sits down, and sets Yoruichi next to her.

"I only just spotted you, so I jumped behind you, and called out your name. Ichigo doesn't know you're back yet, does he?" Yoruichi asks, and Rukia gives a small smile.

"Not yet. I didn't want to crash his classroom again. I figured I'd meet him as he's getting out of class." Rukia says as she leans back, and stares up at the sky.

"You know, I wish I had been in town when you and Ichigo first came across each other," Yoruichi says to Rukia. "I always miss such interesting things when I leave town." Yoruichi adds with a sigh.

"When did you first meet Ichigo?" Rukia asks Yoruichi suddenly. She had never thought about it before, but all of a sudden, she's curious.

"The night you were taken back to Soul Society by Byakuya and Renji, I was with Kisuke when he started to heal Ichigo and brought him back to the store. I was also there when Ichigo came to, not that he noticed me that night. " Yoruichi says in a voice that immediately catches Rukia's attention.

That was definitely ranked as one of the worst nights in her life. It had broken her heart so much to have to yell at Ichigo and then tell him to stay put so that her brother didn't kill him in front of her.

It had torn her apart from the inside out to have to walk away from him, to not be able to go to him, and to not be able to touch him comfortingly as she thought he laid there dying. It hadn't been nearly as easy as she's sure it looked to Ichigo. It had haunted her every day that she was locked up in Soul Society, until she learned Ichigo had broken into Soul Society.

"I see." Rukia says quietly, but Yoruichi doesn't miss the flash of pain that had shown so clearly in Rukia's eyes before she had responded.

"He was really upset until he learned there was a way to save you." Yoruichi says, watching Rukia for her reaction.

"Oh?" Rukia says with interest.

"Even though we told him he shouldn't move, the moment he learned that there was in fact a way to get to Soul Society, he jumped to his feet and demanded that Kisuke tell him how to get there." Yoruichi says to Rukia.

"Really?" Rukia asks with wide eyes.

"Kisuke had to knock him on his back to explain that he needed more training to actually come and save you. Kisuke got through to him though." Yoruichi says, and Rukia can't help but smile.

"I used to have to knock him to his ass to make him listen to me too. I don't really have to do that anymore though." Rukia says, as she feels bad at what Ichigo had been put through due to her past problems.

"No, I don't suppose you would. He actually pays attention when you speak." Yoruichi says before she checks Rukia for her expression. Rukia is doing a great job of masking anything that she's feeling.

"He must have gotten sick of being kicked around, for not listening." Rukia says softly, as though she's deep in thought.

"Please. That kid loves it when you hit and kick him. You kidding me? Half the people he's friends with, he's been clobbered by at one point or another." Yoruichi says, causing Rukia's mouth to fall open a tiny bit.

Something that Kaien-dono once said just popped into her mind. He had shown her his fist and told her that it was where the heart was born. Perhaps that sentiment applies quite literally to Ichigo.

"I don't think he actually likes it." Rukia finally says, as she struggles not to smile.

"I think he likes any attention that he gets from you, be it good or bad." Yoruichi says before she hops off the bench. "I think you're the same way when it comes to him." Yoruichi adds before she saunters off as only a cat can do. Rukia stares after her, red faced.

_Could it be true? Is it possible that Yoruichi is correct, that Ichigo __just likes to have my attention?_

Rukia shakes her head and tries to clear her mind of all of her disturbing thoughts, that won't leave her alone right now.

_It's impossible_.

Rukia can clearly picture Ichigo in her mind, demanding to Urahara that he tell him how to get to Soul Society. Rukia had never thought it was right, the way Byakuya attacked Ichigo when he was clearly concentrating on his fight with Renji, but then again, if Byakuya hadn't stopped Ichigo, her oldest friend might now be dead.

_It all seems to have worked out as best as it possibly could, besides the fact that Aizen got his hands on the Hougyoku_.

There are things that Ichigo went through for her sake, that she's never really even stopped to seriously consider before.

"The moment he learned there was a way, he was anxious to come save me." Rukia whispers as she rises from the bench to continue her walk through Karakura Town.

She feels a little bit bad at the way she reacted towards Ichigo both times when he came to rescue her in Soul Society. He had been fighting his heart out for her, and she had called him an idiot more than once.

_But I thought he'd be killed for sure. That's my only defense. I wonder if he realizes that. I thanked him before he came back here after that, but it sure seems like he deserved more than just a simple thanks. What in the hell is wrong with me? Was I seriously so self-absorbed that I failed to see all that he did, just to make sure I didn't die? At least I've saved him since then, too. It's my only saving grace._

Rukia's thoughts center around Ichigo, and all that he's done for her since she met him. He's become such a magnificent and strong Shinigami too. Even though he has his own powers now, and she has her powers back, a small piece of her soul is still with him and always will be.

_He feels that way too, I'm sure of it._

Rukia sighs as she continues her walk, and she looks in the store windows her mind runs like it's out of control. He fought Ikkaku, Zaraki Kenpachi, her brother, and he even attempted a run at Aizen, all to save her.

"He really deserves a big kiss, at the very least." Rukia mutters out loud, even as a silly smile forms on her face when she imagines what kind of expression he would wear if she jumped up on him and planted a big wet one right on his lips.

_He'd probably look at me like I lost my mind, and he'd say my name in a way that would tell me I just blew his mind._

Rukia shakes her head again, and she starts to head towards Ichigo's school. She doesn't care if she arrives a bit early, she'll wait on the roof until she sees him exit.

In class, Ichigo is terribly bored, and so he turns his head to look out the window. He lets out a big bored sigh, until he sees Rukia fly past the window up towards the sky. His mouth gapes open.

"Sensei! I need to use the restroom!" Ichigo practically shouts out, and the teacher gives him a strange look.

Ichigo doesn't hesitate, he dashes out of his class, and he realizes they don't have that much longer left in the school day anyways. He runs into a storage closet and pops out of his body, and then he flies out of a window and to the roof to feel for Rukia's position.

If she was headed to kill a hollow, then he should be helping her out, even though his badge did not indicate a hollow.

He feels her very close by and so he glances around, and he sees her standing with her arms crossed, staring at him.

"Class isn't over yet," Rukia says with a small smile as she walks towards him.

"I saw you fly past the window and I was concerned that a hollow appeared..." Ichigo says as he trails off. He can't stop staring at her face, it's always like this whenever she comes back.

"If that's all you were worried about, you can head back into class. I was just waiting for you to get out of school." Rukia tells him and she watches his face as he sputters a bit.

"Rukia. Is something on your mind?" Ichigo asks as he searches her face. Normally she's already kicked or punched him by now after a period of absence from one another.

"We'll talk when you finish with class." Rukia tells him in a soft voice and a grin. Ichigo nods.

"Okay." Ichigo stares at her a moment longer before he heads back to get his body and go back to his class.

Even though there was only about twenty minutes left, the minutes seemed to drag by for Ichigo.

When class finally ends, Ichigo's friends all stare as he dashes out of the classroom without acknowledging anybody or even saying bye.

"What's wrong with him?" Keigo asks in shock to Mizuiro.

"Who knows?" Mizuiro replies.

Ishida pushes his glasses up on his nose. He knows exactly why Kurosaki is in a big hurry. He had noticed Rukia's reiatsu in the living world earlier in the afternoon.

When Ichigo hurries out of his school, he immediately spots Rukia waiting for him and he hurries over to her.

"Yo." Ichigo says a bit nervously. She hasn't kicked or hit him yet and he wonders how long that can go on for before she finally lets loose and clocks him. She appears to be in a good mood. She's got a hint of a smile on her face, and her eyes look bright.

"Ichigo." Rukia says with a bit of a nod. They fall into step next to each other as they head back to his house.

"Obviously something is bugging you. Do you want to tell me what it is?" Ichigo finally asks after several minutes of silence.

"What makes you say that?" Rukia asks with a bit of genuine surprise on her face. She had actually been enjoying just walking next to him like that. It made it really easy to feel like they were a real couple or something.

"You're not acting like you usually do." Ichigo mutters.

"Nothing is bothering me, although I have had something on my mind. It's absolutely nothing that would bother me though." Rukia tells him with a sideways glance. Ichigo shakes his head at that confusing explanation.

"Okay…so what's on your mind?" Ichigo asks her with a raised eyebrow. Now she can't dodge the question.

"What your reaction would be if I thanked you the way you really deserve to be thanked." Rukia finally answers softly. Ichigo stares at her with a shocked expression.

"What in the hell are you talking about? You don't have anything to thank me for." Ichigo says with a bit of a scoff.

"Yes I do." Rukia says in a voice that's very firm. Ichigo scrunches his eyebrows at her and tries to make sense of what she's saying.

"Okay, then what?" Ichigo asks inquisitively.

"I'll tell you when we're in your bedroom." Rukia says, and the way she says it, sends a shiver down Ichigo's spine. It sounded almost like she was hitting on him or something.

"Alright." Ichigo finally says, knowing that no matter how hard he presses, she won't tell him until she's good and ready.

They don't talk much, the rest of the way home, and Rukia hops up onto his roof to wait for him to come open his window for her. He hurries into his bedroom after entering his house like a normal human being.

When she hears him open the window, she quickly glides inside. She looks around and smiles widely.

"Things never change around here, do they?" Rukia asks when she finally looks at Ichigo who rolls his eyes at her.

"Nee-san!" Kon flies off of the dresser at Rukia and her foot connects with his face as he flies at her.

"Why do you always jump at my chest?" Rukia demands as she pushes his face harder into the floor.

"I just love it when nee-san is home!" Kon says in a super happy voice. Rukia kicks him out of the open window. Rukia and Ichigo listen to his yell as he plummets to the ground and lands with an oomph.

"So…" Ichigo says as he gives Rukia all of his attention. "What's been on your mind?" He asks as he crosses his arms and sinks into his desk chair. Rukia's head snaps towards him, and from what he can tell she appears to be trying not to smile.

"Well…" Rukia says, as she slowly walks towards him, which doesn't take long since his room is very small.

Ichigo feels his heart start to pound rapidly when she suddenly slips into his lap and plants an amazingly passionate kiss on his lips. She kisses him in such a way that he doesn't even think at all. In a moment, he's kissing her back. When she finally pulls away she smiles and has a look of pleasant surprise on her face.

"Rukia…" Ichigo can barely speak. His voice cracked, just by saying that much.

"I figured I should give you a proper thank you for the way you rescued me in Soul Society. I'm glad that you were so receptive," Rukia says before she leans in, and kisses him again.

Ichigo feels like he's under some sort of magical spell as she kisses him thoroughly. He never knew a kiss could be so full of feeling, and that it could touch him to the core of his whole being. When she finally pulls away again, she smiles warmly into his eyes.

"That was just because I liked the first one so much." Rukia admits with a blush.

Ichigo finally finds his train of thought.

"Well Rukia, you've saved me so many times that I've lost count, so I guess I'll just have to kiss you until dinnertime." Ichigo tells her before he pulls her back in for some more. He only has one thought before he's completely lost in the magic that is Rukia.

_I'll take this over being kicked or punched in greeting any day._


	80. As Requested: Ichigo's Concerns

_**A/N-I had a request to do a story that includes Nell so this is supposed to take place during Rukia's fight with Aaroniero Arruruerie. Imagine the lisp please, because it drives me nuts to write it in lisp form…and I'm still not sure whether or not I'm spelling Nell right…so forgive me if I screwed it up.**_

_Ichigo's Concerns_

Ichigo stops running suddenly, when he feels a large burst of reiatsu coming from Rukia and then it immediately weakens.

_You had better not die on me after insisting we split up! Why did I let you persuade me to do that anyways? Rukia! You have to live...for me!_

"Ichigo? What's the matter?" Nell asks with curious eyes. She can see the raw concern on his face, and the way his muscles are all tightened up all nervously.

"Shhhh." Ichigo tells Nell even as Rukia's perfect face and blue eyes come to his mind.

_Rukia!_

"Ichigo?" Nell asks worriedly, ignoring his earlier request to be quiet.

"Nell. I need you to pipe down right now. Please. Just for one minute…okay?" Ichigo asks her in a very tight voice. Nell's eyes widen, but she nods her head in agreement.

Ichigo's lips tighten as he thinks desperately about what will happen to Rukia, and what will happen to him, if she actually dies.

_You are being overwhelmed, aren't you Rukia? I can feel it in your reiatsu. I know yours better than anyone else's. If only I could lend you some of my power! Happiness doesn't exist for me, if you die! Damn it Rukia! You have to live!_

Nell notices Ichigo's quick indrawn breath every couple of moments, and she starts to pick up on the reiatsu that he seems the most focused on. It was the only girl that had come with him on his mission...one of the other Shinigami. Nell realizes that the girl is fighting, and she's obviously having a bit of difficulty, even though she doesn't seem like she's overly weakened at all.

"Damn!" Ichigo mutters right after the reiatsu Nell was focusing on just dropped to a dangerously low level. Nell feels a bit bad that Ichigo is obviously in so much pain, just imagining what might happen to his precious female comrade.

"Ichigo…" Nell says in a sympathetic voice. Ichigo squeezes her tighter in his arms, and he closes his eyes tight for one second.

_Rukia!_

"Not now, Nell." Ichigo says softly as he opens his eyes back up. He holds her so tight that she can't see his face…can't see the raw pain etched into every one of his features, or the terror that fills his entire being at the mere idea of Rukia being dead. She can feel his breathing however. It's ragged, like he's trying not to lose control of his emotions.

_I'm so far away from her right now…should I bust through these walls to find her and help her? She'd probably be pissed if I did something like that though…what am I supposed to do? I can't just let her die…not when she means so much!_

Nell gasps as Rukia's reiatsu seems to flare up to a high level quite suddenly, and she can actually feel the change in Ichigo when it happens.

"Your girlfriend?" Nell whispers to Ichigo. He doesn't answer though.

Nell can tell though. Instead of being focused on the girl he came here to save, he's more focused on a fellow comrade in a tough fight. All of a sudden she feels some other familiar reiatsu, and she realizes that all of his comrades are fighting. She realizes how hard this must be on him, since he is a such a good man.

He seems to have the realization that his other friends are fighting at the exact same time as Nell. He lets out an irritated growl at the fact that everyone is alone, against extremely strong enemies.

"I have to believe in them…" Ichigo mutters in a pained voice.

He finally loosens up on Nell enough that she can pull away a little bit to look at his face, and she can see just how stressed out and agitated he is at the moment. She comes to a final conclusion based on what she's seen and felt in the small space of time that she has gotten to know Ichigo.

_The Shinigami, Kuchiki Rukia, is terribly important to him._


	81. Special Shampoo

**_A/N-A bit lemony, a bit corny, but I still liked how it turned out. I hope you do too! Enjoy! Two chapters in one day again, since I finished another! :P _**

_Special Shampoo_

While Ichigo is showering, Rukia starts digging through her bags. She suddenly comes across something she had forgotten about. It was a present from Rangiku-san, after the Winter War. Rukia had saved Rangiku-san's life and she had forgotten about Rangiku-san's gift.

It was partly because she already had some shampoo in the shower, she had put away this tiny bottle of shampoo and had forgotten about it completely until now. Rukia grins, since she couldn't have found it at a better time. She had run out of her favorite shampoo two days ago and had been using Yuzu and Karin's bottle.

Rukia sits down on Ichigo's bed and starts to read the label out loud.

"Specifically made for use by Shinigami, helps to keep hair looking its absolute best." Rukia reads. She notices that it was made by the Twelfth Division, and so she's fairly certain she'll notice a difference in her hair, after using it.

Rukia grins when Ichigo enters his bedroom with a towel around his waist. She can always appreciate this type of view. Sometimes being in his bedroom has some of the very best perks in the world. Her hands tighten around the bottle of shampoo.

Ichigo turns red when he sees Rukia's eyes slide over his entire body. He turns red and looks away from her. She bounces off the bed and quickly exits his room so that she too, can enjoy a nice hot shower.

Rukia gets into the bathroom, locks the door as Ichigo warned her she must always do with his father lurking around, and sets down the shampoo to quickly sheds her clothes. She turns on the water, which is still warm from Ichigo having been in there.

Rukia imagines him naked in this very shower only minutes ago and she refuses to look in the mirror at the blush that has crept up her cheeks. She grabs the shampoo off the counter and slips into the tub.

The hot steamy water feels absolutely wonderful as it runs down her body. Rukia sighs in pleasure…a hot shower can feel so damned good.

She takes care of all of her bathing needs and then steps out reluctantly when the water slowly starts to lose its heat. She grumbles a bit at that as she wraps the towel around herself and grabs the shampoo bottle.

There's probably only enough shampoo to use it no more than five times. It has a wonderful scent to it though, and Rukia decides she'll want to order more of this. It smells like roses.

When Rukia makes her way to Ichigo's bedroom and lets herself inside, she's relieved that he's gone. She searches for Kon but he's not in sight either. Rukia opens the closet and pulls out underwear, a bra, and one of her favorite dresses. She picks the dress she wears the most, and she puts it on.

Even though she sleeps in Karin and Yuzu's room, she keeps her stuff in Ichigo's closet, and she spends all of the time that she's not sleeping, in his presence, doing private things, or waiting for him to finish doing private things.

She heads downstairs and finds Yuzu and Karin on the couch watching the television.

"Hi Rukia-chan!" Yuzu says brightly with a little wave. Rukia smiles at that.

"Good morning." Rukia says, as she notices that Isshin is not with the girls. Karin sees her looking around.

"Ichi-ni is in the kitchen." Karin says before she turns her attention back to her show.

"I wasn't wondering that, I was just surprised that your father isn't here." Rukia says to them. Yuzu smiles at her.

"He won't be back until it's dinnertime." Yuzu tells Rukia, who nods in understanding.

"I see." Rukia says before turning and walking towards the kitchen.

When she walks in, she's surprised to find a plate already prepared for her, and it looks like Ichigo hasn't even started eating. She doesn't comment on it though, she just sits to join him and they both begin to eat.

It's quiet, since they're both fairly hungry, and they both enjoy what's on their plates. Rukia's eyes soften as she quickly glances up at Ichigo who is staring at his own plate.

_He knows what I like. I guess it's only natural considering we shared his bedroom for awhile and he was always bringing me meals back then._

Rukia looks back at her plate to keep eating, and that's the moment a pleasant smell hits Ichigo's nose.

He looks at Rukia, and suddenly, he's no longer interested in food. What he'd really like, is to have a taste of Rukia. He pushes aside his plate, which is only half finished and Rukia looks up at him in surprise. She's even more befuddled when she realizes that his full attention is on her, and his aura…is unexplainable.

"Ichigo…is something wrong?" Rukia asks in a soft voice, as she doesn't understand what is happening.

Ichigo doesn't say anything, because everything running through his brain right now is inappropriate talk to be having with Rukia. He just stares at her with a very intense look, like he's about to pounce on her or something, and Rukia nervously clears her throat.

_Why isn't he answering me?_

Rukia pushes her chair back when his eyes change a bit. They're not the same brown that they usually are. They're more gold colored.

"_What's this? Oh…I see. It's pathetic that this is all it takes for you to lose control." _

Rukia stares in horror at Ichigo. The voice that just came out of his mouth was not his own. He shakes his head and when he looks at her again, his eyes have returned to their normal color.

"What in the hell was that?" Ichigo asks, he sounds pretty shaken up by the incident. Rukia stares at him wide eyed and shrugs. She pulls her chair forward again and begins to eat her food.

_Whatever it was, I refuse to think about it._

Rukia takes a few bites, before she notices that Ichigo still hasn't touched his remaining food. She looks back at him again, and she notices that he's completely focused on her.

"What's up?" Rukia asks in a puzzled voice, causing Ichigo to turn bright red.

_You don't want to know. You'd probably kick it if you did know._

"I'm full." Ichigo says in a very tight voice as he grabs his plate and takes it to the sink.

Instead of setting it down though, she watches as he consumes the rest of his meal at a terrifying speed without looking at her once. He puts his plate down and hurries out of the kitchen, to leave Rukia staring after him feeling more than slightly confused.

Rukia quickly finishes her food and runs her plate over to the sink and sets it on top of Ichigo's.

She'll wash them after she goes to see what in the hell is wrong with Ichigo. She dashes up the stairs and into his bedroom. She finds him sitting on the bed, looking rather puzzled.

Rukia walks over and sits down next to him, and the scent of her shampoo gets into his nose again, and Ichigo starts to take deep breaths, even as Rukia observes him with worry.

_All I can think about is how much I want to rip off her clothes and make love to her until she screams._

Ichigo shakes his head and Rukia bites her lip.

"Is something wrong? Tell me, Ichigo!" Rukia says in a stressed out voice.

"I can't believe I'm saying this to you…but if you don't get off of my bed right now, I can't guarantee that I won't hop on you in the next five seconds." Ichigo whispers, without looking at her. Rukia's eyes widen and she bounds out of the bed.

"What in the hell was that? Are you insane?" Rukia asks him with wide eyes as she backs away a little more. With each step she takes away from him, he feels his sanity returning a little bit.

"I'm sorry…I don't know why…but…" Ichigo says, and Rukia makes the fatal mistake of quickly stepping forward to hit him on the head.

"Get a hold of yourself!" Rukia screams into his face. Ichigo's eyes turn completely gold and suddenly he yanks her into the bed. Rukia lets out a little shriek as he pulls her body close to his.

"Why did you have to come so close?" Ichigo's agonized voice says so close to her ear as he hugs her tighter to him. Rukia freezes. She could move…but she doesn't really want to.

"Ichigo…" Rukia whispers in a moved voice. When she hears his response though, she cringes.

"_You're right about her…even though you're still pathetic…Ichigo! You don't just hug a woman…you make her yours!" _

"What?" Rukia asks as she starts to try and get away.

"Don't…" Ichigo's voice says softly in her ears. Rukia stops trying to get away.

"What's going on here?" Rukia asks him in a very desperate voice. She doesn't understand any of it.

"I don't know…" Ichigo mumbles before he hugs her tight and takes a deep breath of her hair.

The door busts open, and his twin sisters jaws are open when they catch Ichigo and Rukia in a very suspicious looking embrace. The embarrassed pair, pop up out of Ichigo's bed and stare at his sisters in horror.

"Wow…Ichi-ni. I didn't know you had it in you!" Karin says in an amazed voice as her eyes are very wide. Ichigo begins to cough uncontrollably at that remark.

"We should leave them alone." Yuzu tells Karin, as she pulls the door shut. They both grin at the blushing pair as the door swings shut.

Ichigo scratches his head and then his attention is back on Rukia. She gulps a bit nervously at the expression on his face.

"What is with you today?" Ichigo asks her in a low voice.

"Me!? What is it with _you_ today?" Rukia asks him in a near hiss.

"Normally I can stop myself from acting when I feel this way but today I can't seem to-" Ichigo stops talking when he realizes what the hell he just said to her.

"What?" Rukia asks him with narrowed eyes.

"I want to take off all of your clothes…and then all of mine…and I want to hold you that close again." Ichigo tells her in a very husky voice. Rukia feels like she is incapable of keeping up with the flow of this conversation.

"Eh?" Rukia says even as a shiver of anticipation runs through her body at the picture his words just painted.

"I saw how you looked at me earlier…when I came bacl in here after taking my shower. You feel it too." Ichigo tells her in a shaky voice.

_Where did all of this bravado come from?_

Ichigo can't comprehend any of it. Both times he tried to fight his feelings, his inner hollow began to come out. Fighting his feelings today, is out of the question if that's the result. Ichigo reaches out and catches her around the waist, he quickly pushes her back onto his bed and he climbs on top of her.

"Ichigo!" Rukia whispers nervously, as his eyes are no longer brown or gold. Now they're filling up with reiatsu. "This isn't a battle!" Rukia says nervously, even though he looks totally hot the way he's exuding all of his reiatsu like this.

"It's the best kind of battle. This will be our greatest fight yet, Rukia." Ichigo tells her, as he starts to slide her dress up. Rukia doesn't know what he means by what he said, but her heart is slamming against her chest when he relieves her of her dress.

"Battle?" Rukia finally says, even as he's yanking his shirt over his head.

"I'll get my sword out in a minute." Ichigo mutters at her while he unbuttons and unzips his pants. Rukia blushes at that. She knows _exactly_ what he means by _those_ words.

"Stop!" Rukia says, before he can pull his pants off. Ichigo stops suddenly and stares at her. He pulls his hands completely away from his pants, and gives her a startled expression.

"Why? I know we both want this." Ichigo tells her, with his eyes still all in a light blue spiritual haze.

"Not like this!" Rukia tells him. She doesn't like how it feels like she's not really with Ichigo. She never imagined it could be this uncertain roller coaster ride that the day has been so far.

"Why shouldn't I make love to you?" Ichigo asks her in an aching voice.

"Is that what you call it?" Rukia asks him in a timid voice.

"With us…it couldn't be anything else." Ichigo answers her and then his reiatsu flares heavily on his finger and he touches her bra in between her breasts.

The bra snaps apart at his touch and he stares down into her eyes for a second before he leans down and kisses her. Rukia wants to close her eyes, but she can't. She saw him close his eyes, and the moment he did, his reiatsu encircled both of them, a blue mist of reiatsu that soothed every inch of her being.

Rukia kisses Ichigo back with all of the emotions that she's been hiding for such a long time. When he finally pulls away, his eyes are brown, and he's looking at her with total amazement.

"Ichigo…" Rukia whispers, when he runs his hand up and down her arm.

"Do you really want me to stop?" Ichigo asks her in a quiet voice. Rukia stares into his eyes.

"No…but I want to start over." Rukia tells him softly. Ichigo looks at her in a strange way, and she quickly shrugs off the ruined bra and covers her chest.

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asks her worriedly.

"You said we were about to battle." Rukia says with a frown. Ichigo grins at her, and she finds that it is one of his more charming grins, when it's aimed full force in her direction.

"I meant it in a good way. Besides…this feels like a battle." Ichigo says as he glares at her for covering herself up. Rukia feels her mouth turn upwards at his words and she sighs.

"You and I are not battling." Rukia tells him in a firm voice.

"How do you do it, Rukia? How do you take a completely crazy experience like today, and make it feel as though it's completely natural?" Ichigo asks her.

"Do you really love me that much?" Rukia asks him in a small voice. She knows that he does…but she wants to hear it before she gives herself to him.

"You have to ask?" Ichigo says as he stares at her straight in the eyes.

"Yes." Rukia says simply.

"I love you more than I ever thought was humanly possible." Ichigo tells her in a soft voice. Rukia smiles and grabs him around the neck before she pulls him down to kiss him.

"Now…we can make love." Rukia tells him softly. Ichigo doesn't need to be told twice. He nibbles on her lip for a moment before he stands up to remove his remaining clothes. Rukia watches avidly as his body becomes naked and exposed before her.

_So strong…so handsome…so perfect_.

Ichigo can tell that Rukia likes the way he looks naked, and he eyes her panties, which are pink, and say '_it's all about me_' on the front of them.

As cute as they are on her, he wants to see her completely naked too. Rukia blushes when he reaches for her panties and slides them down. She takes deep nervous breaths as he pulls them off of her completely.

_So feminine, so beautiful, so perfect_.

Ichigo gets back on top of her and leans down to kiss her again. It's a much different kind of kiss as their passion builds up from the feeling of their bodies being pressed against one another. Rukia's hands are traveling around his back in feathery light strokes and Ichigo can hardly believe that they're doing this.

He decides he wants to kiss her on places other than her lips, and so he pulls up and starts to kiss her neck. Rukia sucks in a big breath at the way this action triggers a fierce response within her body. She lets out a soft sigh and he kisses her neck for some time.

He moves downwards after awhile and he kisses her breasts, her stomach, her legs, and then he flicks his tongue out right in between her legs.

Rukia had been moaning a lot, but when he did that, she flinched from the shockwave of pleasure that roared through her body at the flicking of his tongue, in what had to be a forbidden place.

She gives him a glazed over look of passion when he looks up at her and he sits up and then crawls over her again. He positions himself above her and he stares into her eyes as he enters her.

"I love you Rukia." Ichigo gasps as he pushes completely into her. She's surrounding him in a way that feels so damned good, and he kisses her forehead before he begins to make love to her the way his body wants to.

With every excited gasp and moan that she makes, he thrusts more powerfully and more swiftly inside of her until his entire world starts to shake and everything seems to freeze for a single moment as he feels an intense rush of pleasure so great he's sure it will kill him. He's so lost in his release that he barely notices she's having hers too.

He falls against her body and holds her tightly.

"I don't believe it." Rukia's voice says quietly. Ichigo doesn't have to ask her what she means. He can't believe it either.

The whole week ends up being like this. They are in each other's arms every chance they get.

Ichigo's father spent the week praising her nonstop, and it was similar to that when she was in Ishida and Sado's presence too. Ichigo started to get aggravated at how everyone suddenly seemed to want to comment about how great Rukia is. He had to drag her completely away from Keigo and Mizuiro when they started the same crap.

Rukia notices when the shampoo runs out, that while Ichigo and she still make passionate and wonderful love, he's far less aggressive than what he was. It only takes two days for Rukia to notice the difference. She also notices that the men around her stopped showering her with endless compliments when she stopped using it too. She sneaks far away from Ichigo with her spirit phone to call Rangiku-san.

"Hello!" Rangiku-san answers happily when she sees Rukia's assigned number pop up on her phone.

"Rangiku-san…what was that shampoo that you gave to me, after the Winter War?" Rukia asks suspiciously.

"You liked it, didn't you?" Rangiku-san asks with a giggle.

"I don't know how I feel about it. What was it?" Rukia asks.

"It's a great shampoo. It smells great, and the way it affects the men…You know…I don't have to tell you!" Rangiku-san says with a laugh. Rukia feels a bit of dread in her stomach when she hears that.

"What do you mean by that?" Rukia asks in a quiet voice.

"If a man loves you, and I mean really loves you, he won't be able to stop himself from making love to you if he gets too close to you when you're wearing it, unless you make him stop. If he only likes you, he'll be kind and shower you with compliments, and if he dislikes you, he won't be able to stand the scent of it." Rangiku-san says with a giggle. "Nemu was actually the one who developed it. It's so that women can weed out the men who are only looking for a piece of ass." Rangiku-san says with a giggle.

"Isn't that kind of like tricking a man though?" Rukia asks in horror.

"The reaction is dependant upon their true feelings for you. How can that be a trick?" Rangiku-san demands in a hurt voice.

"To not be able to control himself though?" Rukia asks in an appalled voice.

"I see. You're worried you somehow tricked him into sleeping with you." Rangiku-san says.

"I didn't say that we slept together!" Rukia spits into the phone.

"You don't have to. You used the shampoo, right?" Rangiku-san asks.

"Yes." Rukia admits in an embarrassed voice.

"Then you two definitely made love. The way you two are? Why do you think that was my present to you? After a big Winter War, you have to get back to the important things in life…like love." Rangiku-san says, before she hangs up.

When Rukia tells Ichigo about it all, he doesn't seem upset, mad, and he doesn't accuse her of taking advantage of him. Instead he smiles happily at her. He's also relieved that he won't have to listen to all kinds of men keep praising her nonstop.

"What a nice thing she did for us." Ichigo says before he pulls Rukia in for a comforting hug.

He could tell she was upset about it when she explained. Her eyes widen at his inability to be upset about it. He certainly doesn't feel like he was tricked. He felt like his eyes were forced open about everything, and he's glad it happened.

What neither of them realize though, is that first time, Ichigo's flaring reiatsu had overpowered the effect of the shampoo, and all it really did was get their feelings out.

When he pulls away from her, Rukia stares into Ichigo's eyes and breathes a sigh of relief. She gently pulls his head down to give him an extra loving kiss. Trust Ichigo to always surprise her with his capacity to love.

_Being together with you makes me truly happy. _


	82. I Want To Be

**_A/N-A very controversial subject will be brought up in this one shot. Please don't focus on that part, I had a rough time trying to research what the Japanese belief is regarding the time when a soul enters the body, and I couldn't find it. So, considering abortion is legal in Japan, I made it when the first breath of a newborn is taken. Plus it would just be creepy if fetuses were sent to Soul Society without being inside of a woman. (IMO)_**

**_It's one of my own ideas, and I just had to do it…I hope you all enjoy this._**

_I Want To Be_

Ichigo had noticed when Rukia walked out of class as he chatted with his friends. Normally they walk home together though, so he cuts his conversation short and hurries after her. She's almost turning the corner out of his view when he jogs outside, and so he runs to catch up with her.

"What's the big idea?" Ichigo asks when he finally reaches her side.

"Huh?" Rukia asks in confusion.

"Don't we normally walk together?" Ichigo asks her in confusion, as he scratches his head and feels a bit embarrassed. It sounds more like a discussion that a couple should be having.

"Yeah…we do." Rukia says softly as she gives him a sideways grin. She doesn't want to admit that the reason she did it was to see if Ichigo would notice.

"So why did you run off ahead of me?" Ichigo asks her in a quiet voice. Rukia just shrugs her shoulders daintily and Ichigo scowls at that. Rukia glances up at him and sees the aggravated look on his face.

"Sorry." Rukia says softly, and Ichigo stops scowling.

_At least she apologized_.

They walk along in silence for awhile, until they hear a woman bawling. They both look around for the source, and finally they see a ghost woman on the ground, with her back to them, she had been hidden by a few trees.

Rukia immediately pulls out her gikongan, and pops it into her mouth. Ichigo and Chappy stay right behind her as she pulls out her zanpakutou and walks around to the woman's front side. The woman doesn't notice them as she's staring at her pregnant belly and sobbing hysterically at all that she's lost.

When Ichigo sees that the ghost woman is heavily pregnant, he feels a great sadness for her. Rukia too, seems hesitant to do anything other than hold her zanpakutou in her hand.

"It's dangerous for you to stay here." Rukia tells the woman in a soft voice, and the woman finally notices the trio in front of her. She gasps when she sees Rukia's sword and the girl in a uniform who appears to be Rukia's double.

"Leave me alone!" The woman sobs as she runs her hand over her pregnant belly. "My baby!" She cries loudly. She starts to hiccup and both Ichigo and Rukia can feel a pull at their hearts as they stare at her.

"You will still have your baby." Rukia tells the woman, and suddenly she stops crying and looks up at Rukia in shock.

"What?" The woman asks in a whisper.

"You will still be pregnant when you enter Soul Society, and you will still get to have your baby. You will exist in death life rather than living life though." Rukia tells her softly. Ichigo's eyes widen at that information.

"Death life?" The woman asks as she is still struggling to gain her composure.

"If you stay here, monsters called hollows could prey upon you. I cannot leave you here like this." Rukia explains in a soft and comforting voice.

Ichigo watches as the woman's eyes widen hopefully and Rukia takes the opportunity to start the soul burial. She presses her zanpakutou against the woman's forehead and holds it there for a moment, and Ichigo finally speaks up.

"Congratulations on your pregnancy." Ichigo says softly. The woman actually starts to smile and Rukia pulls Sode No Shirayuki away as she starts to grin and the woman disappears. Rukia sighs and puts her zanpakutou away. They don't pay attention to the black butterfly fluttering towards the sky.

Ichigo watches as Rukia merges back with her body and continues to walk along as though nothing just happened. Ichigo has to hurry after a moment since it doesn't appear as though she's going to wait for him. Rukia sighs again. She's always wondered what it would be like to be pregnant, but when she had learned just how a woman becomes pregnant, she had changed her mind about fifty years ago and decided she wasn't cut out for getting pregnant.

Now though…things seem to have changed mentally for her. Suddenly she finds herself imagining what having a child would be like, and she blushes when she pictures her first child having bright orange hair.

"A child with Ichigo?" Rukia says extremely softly, under her breath. Ichigo had heard her voice as he fell in step next to her, and he heard his name, but he didn't catch the entire sentence.

"What?" Ichigo asks her with a raised eyebrow. Rukia's head jerks to look at him, and she turns bright red.

"Nothing." Rukia mutters at him before she looks forward again.

"I heard you say my name." Ichigo presses, and Rukia shakes her head at him.

"Can it." Rukia tells Ichigo before she quickens her step. Ichigo gives her a look of confusion, but he lets it go.

"Is it true that she'll still be pregnant in Soul Society?" Ichigo asks her curiously, causing Rukia to give him a confused look.

"Of course it's true. The only way she wouldn't be is if her body had given birth to a live child after her death. The pregnancy is part of the woman, and all of her parts come with her to Soul Society." Rukia answers in a firm voice.

"Hmmm. So what happens if a woman gets an abortion?" Ichigo asks Rukia curiously. Rukia stops and looks at Ichigo.

"What is an abortion?" Rukia asks curiously. This isn't the first time she's heard the word, and she's heard of aborting missions, but what in the hell is an abortion?

"You know…when a woman chooses to end her pregnancy." Ichigo asks Rukia softly.

"The soul doesn't get distributed until birth." Rukia answers calmly. "The balance of souls is carefully monitored, and every time a birth occurs, a soul is immediately released to the newborn upon its first breath, though the make up of the body and characteristics of the body are already predetermined by the parents." Rukia tells Ichigo, who looks quite fascinated by what she has to say.

"Oh." Ichigo says, even though as he thinks about it, the explanation makes sense, since he never saw anything less developed than an infant when he visited Soul Society.

"And when one is born in Soul Society, it's no different. That woman will still give birth, the attributes of her future child are already determined, and a pure soul will enter the spiritual body of her child upon its first breath." Rukia says in a voice filled with authority.

"I suppose you're right, it wouldn't make much sense any other way." Ichigo finally says quietly. "I'm glad that she'll still be pregnant when she goes to Soul Society though. It seemed pretty important to her." Ichigo says as he shoves the hand that isn't holding his bag into his pocket.

"I'm glad too. It helped her accept the burial a hell of a lot easier too." Rukia tells him as she adjusts her bag in her hands.

Ichigo's mind wanders as a result of encountering the pregnant woman and talking with Rukia about newborns and the distribution of souls. He wonders how Rukia feels about having children, or whether or not she ever thought about what it would be like to be a mother. They've never talked about anything like this before.

"Rukia…you told me once that you're nearly ten times as old as me, but you easily pass for the same age as me. You must be very young, in terms of how spirits age in Soul Society." Ichigo says thoughtfully.

"You heard ni-sama. I entered Soul Society as a baby with my older sister when I died in the living world. My sister however, has already passed on from death life." Rukia says softly. "Like in the living world, whether or not you're old doesn't make a difference in when your life ends." Rukia says softly.

"You're not in danger of dying are you?" Ichigo asks with concern.

"Only every single time I fight," Rukia answers softly.

"I understand that, but answer the question…you're still pretty young in terms of how old you could actually become in Soul Society aren't you?" Ichigo asks her, really wanting an answer.

"I guess so…" Rukia answers hesitantly, not sure why he's asking her such a question.

"You could technically live for ten times as long as that, maybe even longer." Ichigo says slowly. Rukia nods her agreement and they fall silent again.

_Why doesn't it bother me that she's lived for ten times as long as me?_

"I spent several decades looking like a small child." Rukia finally tells Ichigo with a sigh. "It's difficult to try and compare the way you mature in the death life versus the living life."

"I think you look close enough in age to me." Ichigo says as he lets his gaze slide up and down her profile.

It's obvious that she's developed in her chest, even if her face does have a very young appearance. He certainly doesn't get many strange looks when he's out with her. It seems like many people assume they're a couple.

"Ichigo…" Rukia mutters quietly. She doesn't know why, but all of this talk is making her focus more and more on the fact that he's the first guy that's ever made her realize that she might want to have babies in the future, when she used to think she'd never let a man come that close to her.

"What's bothering you Rukia?" Ichigo asks her in a puzzled voice.

"Nothing at all." Rukia says with a sigh. There is no way she's going to tell him that she secretly desires to give birth to an orange haired infant. He'd probably be beyond shocked if she admitted that secret fantasy to him.

They walk the rest of the way in silence, since Ichigo can easily sense that Rukia is feeling a bit uneasy about the extent at which they had discussed babies and when they receive their soul. He doesn't understand why she's suddenly tense, but it's obvious that she is.

Ichigo glances at her and tries to picture what she'd look like if she were pregnant. She's so tiny…he'd be worried like hell that giving birth might kill her. Ichigo blushes when he realizes he would be terribly worried since he wouldn't want his kids to grow up without a mother like he had to for the latter part of his childhood.

This is the first time he's ever imagined Rukia being pregnant with his child, and he's embarrassed as hell about it, even though they aren't discussing it and she isn't even looking at him.

_I want to marry her. It's like yin and yang. The two of us make up a whole, and we're connected. There's no other woman I would even consider as the mother of my children._

What in the hell is he supposed to do now that he's had this blatant realization? Obviously, he can't just stay silent forever…or he might end up losing her with his procrastinating. His father's words come back to him suddenly, from the night they visited his mother's grave.

_Don't be wishy washy_.

Ichigo is quite frustrated by the time they're together in his room.

_I'm such a fucking dumb ass! Why didn't I figure all of this out much earlier? I've spent so long in this relationship acting a certain way, that I'm completely lost as to how I'm supposed to change it. _

The more Ichigo thinks about it, the more he realizes that he did notice his attraction to her much earlier. He never hit her again after she saved his entire family, in fact he had vowed that he would let her beat him up as much as she wanted to for the remainder of his life, since she's the sole reason he's got a life in the first place.

_I've been fucking kidding myself…denying my feelings…ignoring my attraction…but this is Rukia!_

The woman occupying his thoughts, sits down on the bed and looks out the window. She's not oblivious to Ichigo's inner torment. It's as easily identifiable as her own, and she also knows that if she focuses on him right now, he'll probably get irritated with her. So instead, she focuses on her own inner desires.

_A baby with bright orange hair and blue eyes would be the best in my opinion. I love his bright orange hair. It's as comforting as the purr of a cat to me. I love his eyes too, but blue eyes would be the proof that it would be his and my child. _

_Hair the color of the center of a burning flame…the center of passion that is outlined in red…like his reiatsu when he maximizes it…black and red. He is like fire itself…and I'm like a fucking moth. He draws me in and no matter how illogical it may be, I can only keep fluttering closer to him._

_Huh. I have the fucking heart of a poet. It's like we belong together though! When he saved me and Renji from Aizen's attack on Soukyoku Hill, and I caught a glimpse of his zanpakutou in bankai for the very first time, I remember thinking that it solidified it. It's black and white that he is the man for me. How else could he have so easily taken over my heart, when I was so careful to keep it at bay from everyone?_

_Holy shit…if I said any of this stuff out loud, I'd want to punch myself. Stop thinking of Ichigo that way! He's not thinking of me that way, so why am I?_

_A bright orange haired baby though…I want that so much!_

"Rukia." Ichigo finally says, and Rukia pulls herself out of her reverie. Neither of them notice that his bedroom doorknob is turning silently and the door is slowly and quietly opening.

"Hmm?" Rukia asks as she turns around to look at him, and Ichigo nervously steps towards the bed and sits on it next to her.

"I've been thinking…about babies." Ichigo finally says softly to her. Rukia's mouth drops open, but she closes it quickly and crosses her arms to stare him directly in the eyes.

"You have my full attention." Rukia tells him, as she waits for him to continue.

"I want to be a father some day…" Ichigo says quietly, and they both flinch when they hear someone scamper down the hallway, and then down the stairs. Then they hear his father shouting at the top of his lungs.

"Thank goodness Masaki! The day is finally here! I'm so happy!" Isshin's voice is at a loud roaring volume, and Ichigo turns bright red. He also notices the door is cracked open.

_He fucking heard me_.

"Your father sure is funny," Rukia says, not understanding at all what just happened.

"Karin! Yuzu! Do not go upstairs until after dinner!" Isshin's voice is so loud, that Ichigo is sure Tatsuki probably heard him from her house.

"I'm going to punch him so hard…" Ichigo mutters with a scowl before he jumps out of the bed and closes his door completely. Even though Rukia is watching…he grabs a small book and props it up against the crack of the door and the door frame so that it will fall forward if the door is pushed open again.

"He sure is loud." Rukia says with her eyes opened wide. Somehow she understands that his father's behavior has something to do with the two of them, though she's not exactly certain why that is.

He walks over to sit next to Rukia again, and he's pissed off, since his father's antics made him lose his train of thought.

"Where was I?" Ichigo mutters nervously.

"You want to be a father someday." Rukia says helpfully. There's no way she could forget that, since that statement had made the image of an orange haired, blue eyed child float through her mind again. Ichigo blushes furiously.

"Right." Ichigo struggles to get out the next words. "What about you?" Ichigo whispers nervously. That question causes Rukia to blush. She's already decided that she won't share her secret fantasy with him, so why does he have to be asking _this_ question right now?

"What do you mean?" Rukia asks, to delay the inevitable.

"Do you imagine having kids?" Ichigo asks, noticing her blushing. "You have, haven't you?" Ichigo asks, feeling confident that he is right.

"Maybe a little bit." Rukia says reluctantly. She's shocked to see Ichigo's expression look so relieved at first and then go to worried. She doesn't understand that at all.

"I'm glad you're not against the idea of it." Ichigo whispers to her, and Rukia's eyes widen to huge proportions.

"Wait a minute…are you talking about having kids with _me_?" Rukia's voice actually raises to a squeak. How is it even possible that they're having this discussion on a day when she can't get the vision of an orange haired infant out of her head? Ichigo blushes and looks away from her.

"You're the only person I can imagine as the mother of my children." Ichigo finally growls out at her, before he awkwardly throws his arm around her and draws her close. Rukia gasps, but she doesn't pull away.

"Really?" Rukia asks in wonder. Of all of the ways she thought her afternoon might go, this was not it.

"Are you allowed to marry as you desire?" Ichigo asks her, even though his face is still pink. Rukia gasps again, and she can't stop blushing either.

"I'd marry you even if I was forbidden from it." Rukia says in a choked up voice. "Just like I came to help you rescue Inoue when I was forbidden to do so." Rukia says quietly.

Ichigo takes the hand that's resting on her shoulder, and he moves it to her cheek, to tilt her head towards his, and she gives him a beautiful look of surprise when he meets her lips with his own. His fingers slowly caress her soft cheek and she brings a hand up to run it through his hair.

He nudges her mouth open and slips his tongue into her mouth and he lets his hand go from her cheek to her hair…it's so silky, and her skin is soft to the touch.

They find themselves lost in this kiss, and the first taste of the person that has been in their hearts for so long now. When they finally pull away and just look in each other's eyes, Rukia can feel the warmth of her love for him completely filling her body. She only has one thought, as she stares in wonder into his eyes.

_I want to be the mother of your children, Ichigo._


	83. As Requested: Cupid Ichigo & Rukia

_**A/N-I'm a bit aggravated that I'm not receiving e-mails. That includes review alerts, so I want to thank every single person who has taken their extra time out to review the chapters I write. **_

_**This is a request I had via PM to have Ichigo and Rukia try to hook up Ishida and Inoue. I hope you all enjoy it, for this one, Rukia and Ichigo recently became a couple.**_

_Cupid Ichigo & Rukia_

Rukia flops on Ichigo's bed and sighs. She hasn't told him, but she's noticed that Inoue has been giving him what can only be described as longing looks.

_For once, I'm kind of glad that he's slow when it comes to women._

Ichigo walks in the bedroom and sees the look on Rukia's face and he doesn't like that she doesn't look too happy. He has been idiotically happy since they finally confessed their feelings and became a couple, and it kind of bugs him that she doesn't look happy right now.

"Rukia. What's wrong?" Ichigo asks before he sits on the bed and stares at her face. Rukia looks at him and smiles a little bit.

"I have something I need you to do with me." Rukia says hesitantly, and Ichigo blushes, since his mind immediately goes to the gutter.

"What?" Ichigo asks as he imagines Rukia asking him to make love to her again.

"I want you to help me hook up Ishida and Inoue." Rukia tells him in a tight voice and Ichigo scowls at her for the very first time since they became a couple.

"Why in the hell should we do something as stupid as that?" Ichigo demands, feeling a bit depressed that she didn't ask him to make love to her.

"Don't talk to me like that!" Rukia says before she smacks him in the back of the head. Ichigo grumbles for a minute.

"Just tell me why you want to do this." Ichigo says softly. Rukia sighs and gets that unhappy look on her face for a moment and Ichigo frowns at that.

"It would make me happy." Rukia finally says, and Ichigo lets out a sigh.

"I guess I have no choice." Ichigo mutters and Rukia smiles and pulls him tight into her arms.

"Thank you, Ichigo!" Rukia says, before she gives him a sizzling hot kiss. Ichigo forgets his earlier frustration and enjoys the feeling of Rukia kissing him so deeply.

Within moments they're half naked and making out in his bed, and they both look amazingly happy.

Unfortunately for them, Isshin arrives home, loudly and they're forced to stop in the middle of their heavy make out session.

"Damn it!" Ichigo growls. Rukia grins at Ichigo with a sparkle in her eyes.

"Now is the perfect time to get started!" Rukia tells him as they hurriedly get dressed before his father barges in the room. They fly out the window before his father can walk in and Rukia holds Ichigo's hand as they walk down the street.

Ichigo is a little bit embarrassed, since this is still new to him, but he's also happy at the same time, since touching Rukia never makes him anything but happy.

"How exactly do you plan to get those two idiots together?" Ichigo asks Rukia with a raised eyebrow. Rukia giggles at that and looks up at him with a carefree face.

"I have no idea!" Rukia sings out, and Ichigo sighs in an aggravated way.

"I don't see why we have to involve ourselves in this lunacy anyways." Ichigo grumbles under his breath, but Rukia ignores that and pulls him along and then she gasps when she has an idea.

"What about this?" Rukia says excitedly. "We can buy some chocolates for both of them and then say it's from the other!" Rukia says with a smile.

"So what happens when they realize that neither of them sent the candy?" Ichigo asks Rukia, not understanding how this plot works.

"It would open the door for a romantic conversation!" Rukia says as she stares at Ichigo.

"It's more likely to open the door for an extremely embarrassing conversation when both realize that it's a trick." Ichigo tells Rukia, and she frowns.

"You might be right. I wonder what else we could try." Rukia says as she bites her lip.

"Don't ask me." Ichigo says, even as he frowns again.

"How about we invite them out for ice cream and then don't show up?" Rukia asks positively. "Or we could show up and tell them that they would make a cute couple!" Rukia says next. Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"You just want ice cream." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia smiles.

"You know me so well." She admits, even though she now desperately wants some ice cream now that they've been talking about it.

"We can go out for ice cream right now if you want to, while you think about this crazy scheme of yours." Ichigo tells her with a smile, and Rukia grins back happily.

"Don't forget that you agreed to help!" Rukia tells him, and Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. Come on, we'll go get some ice cream." Ichigo says as he pulls her towards the nearest ice cream shop. Rukia blushes lightly as he pulls her along. She enjoys being a couple with him more than she thought was even possible.

They arrive at the ice cream shop and Rukia lets Ichigo order for both of them. When they find their seats, Rukia's amazed by what Ichigo sets down in front of her. Apparently it's a brownie sundae, and it look absolutely delectable.

She smiles widely, even as she tries to think of a way to hook up Inoue and Ishida.

"What are we going to do?" Rukia asks out loud right before she takes her first bite of her treat.

Ichigo watches her when she gets it into her mouth. An expression of delight immediately appears on her face, and Ichigo can't help but to smile at that. Sometimes, she's too cute for her own good.

"How do you even know they like each other?" Ichigo asks her before he eats some of his own ice cream.

"Don't most guys like her?" Rukia asks with surprise. Ichigo gives her a strange look.

"I don't know. I never did. I know Keigo likes her." Ichigo tells Rukia.

"Keigo likes anything in a skirt. Inoue deserves better than him." Rukia tells Ichigo before she takes another very big bite of her ice cream.

"I won't argue with you there." Ichigo agrees. He watches as she tries hard to come up with some sort of plan for hooking up their friends. All of a sudden, a wicked smile appears on her face.

"I have it!" Rukia says triumphantly. To reward herself, she takes another huge bite of her treat, and Ichigo's eyes widen.

It really had looked too big to fit in her mouth, but somehow she had stuffed it all in, and he watches as she looks deliriously happy as she enjoys the bite of food she took for well over a minute.

"Well don't keep me in suspense, tell me your plan." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia smiles but shakes her head no. She grins at him as her mouth is finally free to talk.

"This plan, I'm not telling you in advance. All you have to do is come with me. We're going to invite Ishida and Inoue over to your house, and all you have to do is be there." Rukia tells him. Ichigo gives her a dubious look, but he decides to just do whatever she says, and if it is a fuck up, he'll be the one to comfort her.

"Fine." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia grins at him.

"Good." She tells him. Ichigo watches in amazement as she tears apart her dessert and finishes it in record time. He considers entering her in an eating contest at the next Karakura Festival.

_Later…_

"How nice of you to invite us over!" Inoue says, as she and Ishida had run into each other on the way and had decided to walk together. Rukia smiles brightly at the pair.

"Where is Sado?" Ishida asks suspiciously, and Ichigo doesn't meet his eyes.

"Band practice." Ichigo mutters, and Rukia leads them into the family room where they all sit down.

"Ishida, there's something I've been curious about." Rukia says suddenly, and Ichigo flinches.

_She's not going to ease into this at all is she?_

"What is it, Kuchiki-san?"

"You always talk about how you're the last Quincy. It doesn't have to be like that though." Rukia tells him, and Ishida gives her a strange look.

"What are you talking about?" Ishida asks, even as he blushes, because he has a sneaking suspicion that he knows exactly what she meant by that.

"Rukia!" Ichigo hisses, with wide eyes. He shakes his head. She glares at him and crosses her arms, and gives him a glare that clearly is telling him to shut the fuck up.

"I'm talking about how we're constantly fighting. Don't you think that you should be thinking about procreation?" Rukia asks him bluntly. Ishida turns bright red.

"I don't see how that's any of your business!" Ishida sputters, but Inoue giggles.

"Ishida!" Ichigo growls in a warning voice, and Inoue looks back and forth. Rukia clears her throat again.

"Don't you think that you and Inoue could give birth to quite a talented Quincy?" Rukia asks him softly, and both of them turn bright red.

"What?" They both ask with wide open mouths.

"Ichigo and I will one day have babies, and I just think it would be nice if our kids could play with your kids." Rukia says, and that causes Ichigo to start blushing too.

His father's loud laughter can be heard from the kitchen and Rukia just looks around at everyone.

"Kuchiki-san!" Inoue finally squeaks, though she hasn't stopped blushing.

"Inoue-san is not a broodmare!" Ishida shouts, and Isshin's father just laughs louder. They all hear him from the kitchen.

"God help me!" Isshin cries before they hear him hit the floor from laughing so hard.

"My goodness, nobody suggested that Inoue was a broodmare. It was just an idea!" Rukia says defensively.

Ichigo snorts. As far as he's concerned, this whole conversation is completely insane. He understands now why Rukia didn't want to tell him about it in advance. She is the only one not completely embarrassed right now.

"You sure are defensive of her," Ichigo says, coming to Rukia's rescue. Rukia grins at that helpful comment and nods her head in agreement.

"That's right. I also heard you took the spiritual powers from one of the Shinigami who went after her in Soul Society." Rukia says excitedly, which embarrasses Inoue and Ishida. They both haven't recovered from their blushing.

"Are you really going to have children together?" Inoue asks Ichigo, not looking at Rukia. Ichigo smiles at her.

"I can't deny Rukia anything." Ichigo says a bit sheepishly, with a blush. Inoue smiles half-heartedly.

"Are you completely against the idea of hooking up?" Rukia asks them in surprise. Ishida just blushes and pushes his glasses up. His answer will be dependent on Inoue's answer. She sighs.

"I'm not against it, but I am not ready for something like that either." Inoue says.

"I would consider it an honor if Inoue-san wanted to date me, but I would never pressure her to do so!" Ishida says, before he stands. "If that's all, I'd like to go home." He tells them. Rukia frowns, but nods her head. Inoue stands too.

"I will see you soon," Inoue says, she just doesn't want to stay by herself around the happy couple. Rukia watches them leave, and she looks at Ichigo.

"What do you think?" Rukia asks him, and Ichigo smiles at her.

"I think you're insane…saying all that stuff…are you nuts?" Ichigo asks her. She sighs.

"Maybe I am. I still love you though." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo puts his arm around her.

"I love you too."

_The Next Day…_

"No! It's a nightmare, it's too horrible to be true!" Keigo's voice reaches their ears before he's even in sight. Rukia and Ichigo rush to the classroom, and they're shocked to learn that Ishida and Inoue became a couple, last night on their walk home.

"How did that happen?" Ichigo asks Ishida in horror. He hopes Rukia doesn't make hooking up people a habit.

"I'm not really sure, I apologized to her for her embarrassment, and she smiled at me and told me that it didn't really bother her. Before I knew it, we were holding hands…and when I walked her to her door…I asked her if she wanted a boyfriend like me, and she smiled. She finally nodded her head yes, and so I told her I'd treat her well. She told me she knew I would and then she kissed me on the cheek." Ishida admits, with a red hot face.

"Wow," Ichigo says in a dumbfounded voice.

_Rukia is simply amazing!_

**A/N- I made an Ichigo & Rukia video on you tube. I think I have it successfully posted in my profile. It's right at the beginning, let me know if it doesn't work for any reason! **


	84. As Requested: I Want To Be 2

_**A/N-This was a request I had to do a part two to chapter 82, I hope you enjoy it!**_

_I Want To Be 2_

Ichigo and Rukia are a bit hesitant to go downstairs when it's time for dinner, since Ichigo had shared with Rukia that his father had most likely heard his comment about wanting to be a father someday.

It had been relaxing up until now, they had just laid in his bed, cuddling and holding each other close, while kissing every once in awhile. They were starting to get acquainted with how it feels to hold one another in an intimate way, and they both enjoyed that feeling a great deal.

Now though, they can hear his father shouting that it's dinnertime. His next shout has them running downstairs at top speed.

"I know you want to be a father, but you should probably wait until you graduate!" Isshin's voice is terrifyingly loud. Rukia and Ichigo both appear in the kitchen with bright red faces.

"We weren't trying to conceive!" Ichigo growls at his father, who only laughs and then smiles at Rukia.

"You're so much smarter than I gave you credit for, to choose a cutie pie like Rukia to be the mother of your children." Isshin says, and Ichigo feels like steam is pouring from his ears.

"Will you lower your voice? People outside can hear you when you're that loud!" Ichigo says angrily.

"You don't want people to know that you're going to marry and have kids with Rukia-chan? Why not? Isn't it better if everyone knows?" Isshin asks, and Ichigo growls at Karin who has started to snicker in the background. Yuzu's hand is over her mouth as she stares at her brother and father with wide eyes. Rukia's gaze is on the floor. She doesn't think she's ever felt this mortified in her life.

"Shut up!" Ichigo shouts before he takes a swing at his father.

Isshin dodges the hit and sidles around to Rukia's side faster than Ichigo thought his father was capable of moving. Suddenly Isshin's arm is around Rukia.

"Welcome to the family, officially, Rukia-chan!" Isshin says with a big jovial smile.

"You…" Ichigo's growl is incredibly angry and Rukia's blushing like crazy as Isshin grins and gives her a half hug.

"Since you're going to be the mother of my grandchildren, it's okay for me to welcome you now, right?" Isshin asks, and Rukia just stares at the floor.

"Get off of her!" Ichigo shouts before he dives for his father. Isshin grabs Rukia and hops out of Ichigo's way and laughs when his son's nose hits the kitchen floor.

"Jealous?" Isshin asks smugly, before he smiles happily at Rukia who is still safe in his arms.

"Damn it!" Ichigo growls as he picks himself up off the floor. He's been made to look foolish by his father twice in the past minute, and he's not sure he can stand that.

"I'm so happy the idiot finally made a wise choice and picked you." Isshin tells Rukia in a heartfelt voice, and Rukia looks up at him, wide eyed.

"Thanks…" Rukia says softly, not exactly sure how she's supposed to react in such a situation. Ichigo finally gets a hand on his father and he forcibly pulls him off of Rukia.

"Enough!" Ichigo growls, ready to swing again, but Isshin hops over to his chair. Rukia smothers a laugh at Ichigo's completely frustrated expression as he glares at his father.

"I always knew you two would fall madly in love!" Isshin says, and Yuzu nods her agreement.

"Remember when she came over with him and we were listening at his door? Karin-chan, remember?" Yuzu asks, and Karin nods. She hadn't known that Rukia was the girl her brother had in his room that day.

"You didn't believe that the girl of his future was inside, but we were right!" Isshin says, holding up a hand for Yuzu to smack. Karin rolls her eyes at them both.

Karin looks at her brother. She has a newfound respect for him, now that she knows he's made a decision about his future, and that his decision is to be with Rukia. She feels like Rukia fits in well with the family. Probably just because she's so close to her brother.

"Are you sure you're okay with marrying someone like my brother?" Karin finally asks Rukia, and Ichigo starts to sputter.

"What in the hell is that supposed to mean?" Ichigo asks with an angry glare pinned at his sister. Rukia smiles at Karin.

"I'm absolutely certain that marrying Ichigo is the right choice for me." Rukia answers, and Isshin smiles broadly.

"I never thought my son would be able to catch such a cute girl! I'm so happy!" Isshin says as tears start to pour down his cheeks. Ichigo glares at his father.

"Don't cry! It's not a very pretty sight!" Ichigo informs his father, but all Isshin can do is wipe at the tears.

"Masaki would be so proud…" Isshin says, and this causes Karin and Ichigo to both start rolling their eyes.

"Cut the crap!" Ichigo mutters in an embarrassed voice. Rukia just seems wide eyed at all of the action going on in the Kurosaki kitchen. Yuzu is eating as though nothing at all is happening.

"Wow…" Rukia says in an amazed voice as she watches Isshin keep bawling.

"Ignore him, if you pay attention to him, he'll only get more dramatic." Karin informs Rukia, and Ichigo nods his head in agreement.

"Oh." Rukia says before she stares at her plate. "Itadakimasu!" Rukia says before she begins to eat. Isshin is the only one who hasn't started yet.

"The entire family is eating together, I'm so happy!" Isshin says, as he continues to cry. Ichigo's eyebrow twitches angrily, as he tries to ignore his father.

"If you keep acting like that, Rukia might decide she wants to have nothing to do with our gene pool." Ichigo growls at his father, and Isshin stops crying instantly to smile at Ichigo.

"Don't pretend like her love is so shallow. I have known for longer than you think, just how close the two of you are." Isshin informs them, and that just makes both Ichigo and Rukia blush.

"That's it. Rukia and I will finish dinner in my room." Ichigo says as he snatches his plate and drink up. He stands and looks at Rukia who reluctantly stands and picks up her things to join him.

_I like eating with his whole family. It's nice_.

They head upstairs and eat in peace in his bedroom. When they finish, Ichigo gives Rukia an apologetic look.

"Sorry about my father. He's so embarrassing sometimes." Ichigo mutters, and Rukia stands, and pushes back the chair she'd been sitting on to eat at his desk. She walks over to the bed and sits down next to him.

"You don't have to be sorry, I like your family." Rukia tells him with a soft smile, and Ichigo grins back.

"I should have known," Ichigo says before he leans over to kiss her again. She throws her arms around him and they fall back into his bed, just enjoying the closeness that kissing brings them.

"Yes, you should have." Rukia agrees when they finally pull apart and breathe hard holding each other.

"I wish he hadn't heard our discussion earlier." Ichigo grumbles before he breathes in the scent of Rukia's hair and lets out a happy sigh.

"Don't let it get to you, at least he's supportive of our relationship." Rukia says, and Ichigo squeezes her tighter as an image of her brother pops into his head.

"Yeah…we may not be so lucky when we share our plans with Byakuya. Can we not do that for awhile?" Ichigo asks Rukia, and she smiles as she nods her head yes.

"I don't mind. After all, it's not like we're going to start trying for children right away." Rukia says as she snuggles closer to Ichigo.

"Right." Ichigo says, even though his face falls a little. He wouldn't mind getting some practice in now, but he's not going to rush moving things so fast when it took him way too long to figure out how he even feels about Rukia.

"I can't wait though…to see what our children look like, and what kind of reiatsu they possess. It should be interesting, seeing as how it's you and me that we're talking about." Rukia says with a smile. Ichigo hugs her a bit more tightly.

_It's a dream, Rukia. To be able to have a family with you would be a dream come true._

_**A/N-I made a You Tube video for Ichigo and Rukia. The link is in my profile, please check it out! **_


	85. Rukia's Secret

_Rukia's Secret_

Ichigo is about to leave the house with his family, but when he gets out to the car, he suddenly changes his mind. Something about leaving Rukia at the house all alone for two whole days, just doesn't sit well with him.

His father understands even without Ichigo having to say anything. Rukia had been invited on the two day trip to the amusement park too, but because of their Shinigami duties, she couldn't afford to be away from Karakura Town for that long. Plus for Ichigo, it wouldn't be any fun without her, so he decides not to go.

He had only agreed to go in the first place since Rukia had insisted he join his family. She had promised to keep an eye on the house, but Ichigo doesn't want to make her stay alone. Sometimes she's just so helpless in the human world without any assistance. He figures it's his job to make sure she's okay.

When he's about to walk back in the house, his father and sisters drive off, and Ichigo watches them disappear around the corner before he walks back into the house with his bag on his shoulder.

Once he's inside, he hears some very strange music coming from the direction of his bedroom, and he's sure he doesn't even own the song that's playing. He rolls his eyes, but he heads towards the stairs and his bedroom to put away the bag, but as he draws closer to his room, the words become more and more audible. It's apparent that Rukia is singing along to the song which is already most of the way completed.

"When I think about you I touch myself, ooh! Ooh. Ooh-ah ah, I don't want anybody else, when I think about you I touch myself, I touch myself! I touch myself, I touch myself, I honestly do!" Rukia's voice comes belting through the door, and Ichigo understands enough English to know what she's saying, and he turns a bit red.

He's wondering whether or not he should walk inside as the song ends, but it seems that she has it on repeat. Ichigo puts his hand on the knob and turns it slowly to open it a crack as the song restarts itself. Ichigo can see Rukia, not facing the door, but rather facing his bed and acting as though she's singing to an imaginary audience.

"I love myself! I want you to love me, when I feel down, I want you above me. I search myself, I want you to find me, I forget myself, I want you to remind me…Ichigo!" Rukia sings before she giggles and catches up to the current words. Ichigo turns completely red. "I want to make you mine!" Rukia's voice belts out, and Ichigo closes his eyes for a second. He can't even believe this is happening.

"Shit." Ichigo mutters. How in the hell is he supposed to announce his presence now? He watches as she dances around seductively, and it appears as though she really is touching herself, from where he's standing. He's fairly certain that if she finds out he's here, she'll have a hell of a fit.

He listens to her sing, quite in tune with the song, except this time instead of singing the parts where the song says oh, she puts in Ichigo. He's totally embarrassed by what he's seeing, and he can't even walk away. He just stands there watching her dance around and laugh as she sings his name before she goes back to touching herself.

"I touch myself…I honestly do!" Rukia belts out very loudly, and Ichigo sighs as the song ends and even though he's red, he pushes the door wide open with his bag on his shoulder. Rukia spins around at the sound and stares at him in horror when she sees the look on his face.

He's looking at her in a much different way than usual. She dashes over to the entertainment system to stop the music, just as it's starting up again.

"Ichigo! What are you doing here? I saw the car pull away about five minutes ago!" Rukia says, feeling a huge pit in in her stomach.

"I decided not to go." Ichigo mutters at her, even though he's still completely embarrassed.

"Oh." Rukia says, biting her lip.

_How much did he hear?_

"Rukia…what-" Ichigo starts to ask but Rukia punches him in the gut and quickly runs out of the room. Ichigo is doubled over in pain and he groans, even as he hears another door slam shut in the house, and moments later, water running.

Rukia stands in the bathroom, shaking.

"He heard me, I just know it!" Rukia mutters before she peels off her clothes and sits in the tub where warm water is filling up.

_What in the hell am I supposed to do now? I shouldn't have added his name into the damned song!_

She can feel her heart race like crazy, even as she tries to calm herself. She had been so certain that she was all alone, why did Ichigo have to wait until the very last minute to decide to stay here with her?

She had loved the song the first time she heard it, and this wasn't the first time she had sang and added in Ichigo's name, but why in the hell did he have to hear her? She shuts off the water now that there's enough in the tub.

_Now he knows I think about him and touch myself! _

Rukia feels her face heat up in complete mortification. All of a sudden, there's knocking on the door, but Rukia decides against responding. She hears Ichigo sigh loudly on the other side before he decides to address her anyways.

"I'm going to go pick up some food for the two of us, I'll be back home in a little while." Ichigo calls through the door.

He listens for a response, but other than the movement of water, he gets none. He wonders if she'll even be here when he gets back.

In the bathroom, Rukia lets out a loud sigh of relief. Now she won't have to face him the moment she leaves the bathroom. She stays extra quiet and listens for the sound of him leaving the house, and when she's sure he's gone, she hurries out of the tub and to his room to get put on some clothes.

"How mortifying!" Rukia mutters as she quickly gets dressed.

She can hardly believe Ichigo heard her singing that particular song and adding his name into it. She certainly doesn't know how she is going to be able handle being in his presence if he tries to bring it up again either.

Rukia seriously considers leaving and sleeping over at Inoue's house, but she's never been one to run from her problems, so she lays on Ichigo's bed and tries to figure out a way to explain her actions to him.

_It's not like there's a whole lot of explanation I can give after he heard me singing all of that_.

Rukia sighs dejectedly. She never meant for Ichigo to find out about her feelings in this way. Even worse is the fact that she's sure he saw her dancing around too, and running her hands all over her body as she did so.

She groans loudly into the pillow as she thinks it's even more embarrassing than she had realized. She doesn't know exactly how much he heard and saw, but she remembers what she was doing and she blushes when she thinks that Ichigo saw her dancing and heard her singing when she had him on her brain.

She finds that the time spent away from him, doesn't lessen the humiliation of it all either. She doesn't want to talk about it at all, but she's pretty sure she won't be able to avoid the subject forever.

She's glad he's not back yet. She hopes he takes his sweet time picking up food for them. She remembers to collect her CD before he comes home and she hides it in her bag. She wonders if she'll ever listen to it again, since it will only bring back unpleasant memories.

She's actually given a bit of a reprieve, since Ichigo doesn't return home for a couple of hours. When she hears the front door open though, she turns red and hops out the window and onto the roof.

Suddenly Rukia smiles as she remembers how Yuzu had come to collect Kon for the trip to the amusement park to sleep with at night. Rukia hadn't argued since Ichigo was supposed to be with his family and having Kon around was a good idea in case he needed a soul in his body temporarily.

She realizes that all she has to do is focus on other things, and she doesn't feel quite so tense.

Inside the house, Ichigo hesitantly opens his bedroom door and is a bit surprised when he doesn't immediately spot Rukia. He slides open the closet, but she's not there either. He closes his eyes and he feels she's close, and he realizes she's on the roof. He hops up to the roof to join her, and Rukia looks a little surprised that he still has shopping bags in his left hand.

"If you're hungry, I can make something." Ichigo says hesitantly, and Rukia just shakes her head at him, but she feels herself heating up. She doesn't meet his eyes or look at his face, so she doesn't see that he's in much the same condition as she is.

"You don't have to right this second." Rukia mutters at him, keeping her face averted.

"I…uh…got something for you." Ichigo mutters at her before he holds the bags out. Rukia finally looks at him and gives him a look of surprise.

"You did?" Rukia asks in shock.

"Yeah." Ichigo says, feeling like his face is even hotter than before. Rukia accepts the bags and opens them. She gasps in pleasure at what she sees.

"Bunny slippers! Bunny pajamas! Oh how cute!" Rukia squeals as she looks at the pink slippers and pajamas that Ichigo bought for her. Without even thinking it through, she throws her arms around him in happiness. Ichigo blushes and hesitantly hugs her back.

"Do you forgive me?" Ichigo asks her softly. Rukia turns red and her mouth falls open as she pulls away from him. She gives him a hard stare.

"Forgive you for what?" Rukia asks him with wide eyes.

"For not deciding to stay here with you sooner than the last minute. I feel bad that I invaded your privacy." Ichigo mutters. He knows she doesn't want to talk about her song and dance, but unfortunately he hasn't been able to get it out of his head since he saw her doing it.

"I forgive you." Rukia mutters back, wondering if this is really it. She can hardly believe the subject will be dropped without any embarrassing talks.

"And also…" Ichigo says, but he stops to take a big breath. "For liking it." Ichigo tells her, but he won't look at her. Rukia's mouth drops open as she stares at him.

_He liked it? What in the hell does that mean?_

"What?" Rukia asks in a high pitched voice.

"You know…your performance…I liked it." Ichigo mutters again, and Rukia feels like her face must be purple, but also she feels like her heart is going to thud its way right out of her chest.

"Uh…I'm glad." Rukia says and Ichigo finally meets her gaze. He notices her cheeks are as red as his feel, and she notices the same about him.

"Maybe next time instead of touching yourself…you can touch me." Ichigo says quietly, and he's surprised he was able to get that sentence out without stammering. Rukia's eyes look all wide, but then she smiles.

"I see. I really love the presents." Rukia tells him before she starts to lean closer to him. Ichigo holds his breath until Rukia's lips find his. They kiss for a minute before she pulls away and smiles.

"I'm glad you like them…and I'm glad you like me." Ichigo whispers to her.

"I more than like you, but we'll discuss that later. Lets go inside, and you can show me what you picked up for us to eat." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo grins as he stands to join her in the house.

They have two more whole days alone, and they just finally acknowledged their feelings for one another. Ichigo smiles when he thinks of how much time he'll get to spend holding her in his arms without any interruptions from his nosy and annoying family. It's the perfect way to start their more involved relationship. He also knew exactly what she meant when she said she more than liked him.

_I love you too, Rukia._

_**A/N- The song Rukia was singing to was Blondie-I Touch Myself, I hope you liked it!**_


	86. As Requested: I Want To Be 3

_**A/N- I had a request to do this story, it's supposed to be a continuation from chapters 82 & 84. I hope you all enjoy it! It's dedicated to the one who requested it!**_

_I Want To Be 3_

When Ichigo comes home, he sees Rukia sitting on the couch, engrossed in a book. They had only moved into this house last week, and it's only a few doors away from the Kurosaki Clinic.

He walks over to give her a kiss, and she barely notices him until his lips are on her cheek. She smiles and then turns her head to collect a proper kiss on her mouth.

"Ichigo! I've been doing some studying and I think it's possible for me to be pregnant by this time next month!" Rukia says with a big grin. Ichigo just looks at her and waits for her to explain.

"Of course it's possible." Ichigo says, not really understanding what she's getting at.

"I bought a ovulation kit today. When the time is optimum, we'll know and be able to make love at the right time to conceive! Plus, I've found that there are certain positions that also help increase the likelihood of getting pregnant!" Rukia says, beaming.

They've only been married a few weeks, they had only stayed at his father's house for two days after their marriage ceremony, directly after the honeymoon since their home wasn't ready to be moved into just yet.

"That's good," Ichigo says, absentmindedly. While he wants her to get pregnant too, he doesn't mind if it doesn't happen immediately.

"See, I'm not supposed to be on top, and we're not supposed to do it sitting or standing because of gravity. There was one woman on the internet who has eight kids and she swears by the wheelbarrow position. Generally though, medical websites just say I should stay laying down for fifteen minutes after insemination. Another woman said online that I should have you hold my legs up against the wall following intercourse for ten minutes, since she did that after being unsuccessful at getting pregnant, and got pregnant right away after she did that!" Rukia chatters on and on while Ichigo's eyes get big and round.

"Have you taken the ovulation test?" Ichigo asks her, and Rukia nods her head even though her face falls a little bit.

"It's not the right time yet." Rukia says as she bites her lip. "That's why I'm doing so much research." Rukia tells him.

"Oh." Ichigo says, wondering if she wouldn't mind going to their bedroom anyways.

"Oh! Your father invited us to a barbeque on the weekend too. I almost forgot about that." Rukia says as she remembers Isshin had stopped by while Ichigo was gone.

"Okay." Ichigo says. He looks at his wife with desire in his eyes, and he grins as he knocks the book out of her hand.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Rukia asks loudly, but Ichigo grabs her by the cheeks and leans down to kiss her.

"Take a break from research and lets go to the bedroom now." Ichigo whispers into her ear. Rukia frowns at him.

"I promise we'll get it on later. Right now, I want you to sit down and help me research getting pregnant." Rukia tells him before she picks her book back up and thrusts a few books in his direction. Ichigo sighs and walks around to sit next to her.

They both leaf through their books quietly for a little while, until Ichigo breaks the silence.

"What about charting?" Ichigo asks her suddenly, and Rukia smiles as she pulls out her chart.

"I already did that while you were gone. According to the chart, the ovulation kit should be giving us the go ahead sometime in the next seven days." Rukia tells him with a grin.

"That's good," Ichigo says, noticing how happy that information seems to have her.

"Yes, after the ovulation strip gives us the go ahead, we have 2 days to get to making with the love. Ovulation is supposed to occur shortly after the test gives the go ahead." Rukia tells him proudly. Ichigo's impressed with all that she's learned.

_The Day Before The Barbeque…_

Rukia nearly screams in joy when the kit indicates that her ovulation will be starting very shortly. She wishes Ichigo were around, but he's not, and so she will just have to wait impatiently for him to get home.

She's in for a long wait. Ichigo runs into some hollow problems outside of Karakura Town, since he had driven out of town to arrange a romantic weekend for he and Rukia the following week.

He had gotten reservations at a nice restaurant and reservations at a hotel with all kinds of luxurious extras available, particularly things he thinks Rukia will enjoy. A humongous hollow materialized on the road in front of his car and he had no choice but to get out and confront the damned thing.

When he pulled over and got out of the car, more and more hollows started to materialize, and it seems like for every one that he kills, two more materialize. He has a duty to protect everyone from these damned things though, and so he doesn't leave…he just keeps killing hollows.

Rukia starts to worry when it gets dark and Ichigo still isn't home, and hasn't called. She stays up really late waiting for him and blowing up his cell phone, but to no avail, it seems like he's disappeared. She ends up falling asleep unwillingly after three in the morning, and when she wakes up late in the morning, and Ichigo still isn't home, she begins to get very panicked.

It's the day of the barbeque, and Ichigo is supposed to go with her, nor did he mention being gone for more than a few hours. Rukia is tempted to go looking for him, since it's mind boggling that she can't sense his reiatsu. Either he's far away from Karakura Town, or he's dead.

Rukia gets more and more agitated when it's time to leave for the barbeque, and so she leaves Ichigo a note, since she refuses to believe that her idiot husband is dead. She is quite sad when she arrives at his family's home without him.

_Why does he have to disappear at the perfect time to get pregnant?!_

Isshin can tell Rukia's nervous when she walks into his home.

"Where's my idiot son?" Isshin asks her with a smile, and Rukia's lip starts to quiver.

"I don't know. He said he'd be gone a few hours, but it's been more than a day now. I hope he's okay." Rukia says, and Isshin's eyes widen as he mentally curses his son for making his pretty new wife worry so much.

Ichigo has finally killed every last hollow, and he's totally exhausted when he gets into his home, and when he sees Rukia's note about being at the barbeque, he groans.

He'd forgotten all about that. He rushes to shower and change, and he dashes over to his father's house as quickly as his feet can carry him, and when he runs in the front door without knocking, he nearly knocks his father over.

His father greets him with a fist to the face, and Ichigo who is too tired to fight can only crumple to the floor after his father's brutal hit.

"You'd better have a good excuse for making Rukia-chan worry so much!" Isshin growls at his son, and Ichigo moans on the floor. Rukia walks out of the bathroom, and when she spots Ichigo crumpled to the floor she experiences several emotions at once.

First she's relieved and happy that he's not dead. Then she's pissed off that he didn't call her, then she panics since now is the optimum time to get pregnant. She rushes over to Ichigo's side and bends down to grab him by his ear.

Ichigo shouts as she forces him to his feet as she tugs on his ear and he obediently follows her up to his old bedroom. He expects a flurry of tiny furious fists, but instead, Rukia starts to yank off her dress and panties. When she's naked, she steps forward and starts to relieve him of his clothing too.

"Rukia! We can't do this here! Are you insane?" Ichigo whispers, even as she relieves him of his pants. She holds an angry fist up and shakes it at him.

"We have to do it now! Now is the time!" Rukia tells him in a hard voice, and Ichigo's eyes widen in understanding.

"Don't tell me…" Ichigo says as she yanks down his boxers.

"That's right, I was given the go ahead yesterday, which means we are behind schedule! Now is not the time to be shy!" Rukia says before she turns away from him and immediately does a hand stand.

"You're serious?" Ichigo breathes. He gawks at her and her voice sounds a bit strained, perhaps from being upside down when she speaks next.

"Grab my legs Ichigo, we're doing the wheelbarrow position!" Rukia informs him loudly, and Ichigo starts to blush.

"We have to stay quiet!" Ichigo says in an urgent voice, even as he follows her instructions and grabs a hold of her thighs with his hands. He can hardly believe that this is even happening. He's so fucking exhausted, and now she is demanding that he fulfill his role in getting her pregnant.

He also notices that his body isn't protesting to Rukia's demands at all. No matter how tired he may be, he's incredibly turned on too, and so he shakes his head in disbelief before he starts to tease her a bit by rubbing himself around her outer area before he enters her.

They really should have practiced this last week when she described it to him, it's easier said than done. He unintentionally ends up forcing her to walk on her hands forward until she is up against the wall as they have sex.

It doesn't take him long to reach a climax, particularly since his body is starting to insist that he get some much needed rest. He doesn't exactly know what to do after the climax though.

"Hold my legs up against the wall!" Rukia says in a strained voice. Ichigo looks at her dubiously, but he follows her directions and eases out of her before he pushes her legs up against the wall. He's amazed her arms aren't shaking from having all of her weight on them for this long now.

"How long do I have to hold your legs here?" Ichigo asks with a yawn.

"At least ten minutes. You can spend that time explaining why I haven't heard from you in the past day, and why in the hell it took you a full day to come home!" Rukia grunts at him, and Ichigo sighs.

"I drove out of town to make plans for us for next weekend, and on the way home, I ran into a hoard of hollows. No matter how many I killed, more kept appearing. I didn't leave until the last one was dead." Ichigo tells her. "I tried to call you after getting in my body, but I couldn't get a signal. When I got home and saw your note, I hurried to shower and change before I ran over here." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia is satisfied by his explanation.

"Have you two kids made up yet?" Isshin's voice booms on the other side of the door before he pushes it wide open.

"Shit! Close the fucking door!" Ichigo shouts at the top of his lungs when his father sticks his head in and his eyes nearly pop out of his head at seeing his naked son, holding his naked daughter-in-law against the wall by her legs as she stands on her hands.

Isshin quickly shuts the door, and Ichigo scowls at Rukia, but she doesn't see due to her limited vision.

"So embarrassing." Rukia grunts.

"This was your idea!" Ichigo reminds her with a red face. "How much longer to I have to keep your legs up like this?" Ichigo asks, even as he feels like he might nod off while standing up.

"You can let go now. I'll just lay down for another fifteen minutes. You should get home and go to bed. I'll be home a little later." Rukia tells him as she carefully lowers her legs from the wall. She gets onto her back and leaves her legs up in the air against the wall. Ichigo grabs the blanket off the bed and walks over to cover her with it.

"Alright." Ichigo says, before he leans down and kisses her. He's totally embarrassed when he walks down the stairs and his father is clapping happily at him.

"It's good that she doesn't hold a grudge!" Isshin says with a smirk, and Ichigo glares at his father. If he weren't so tired, he'd punch him.

"I'm going home." Ichigo says before he walks out the front door and hurries home to his and Rukia's bed. He is certain that he's asleep before his head even hits the pillow.

_A Month Later…_

"Ichigo!" Rukia screams as he walks in the front door. Ichigo flinches at the volume of her voice.

"What?" Ichigo asks nervously.

"It's official! I'm pregnant!" Rukia tells him as she claps her hands together. Ichigo smiles at her happiness, and he feels a new warmth in his body that wasn't there a minute ago, before she told him her news.

"Thank goodness we won't have to go through that same type of awkwardness again this month," Ichigo says, remembering how his father had walked in as he held Rukia's legs against the wall as her research had dictated that she do. He also likes to see Rukia's face when he makes love to her, so that positioning hadn't been his favorite.

Rukia runs and jumps into his arms, and Ichigo catches her easily.

"You will be such a wonderful father," Rukia tells him lovingly, and Ichigo grins.

"And you will be the world's best mom." Ichigo whispers before he kisses her passionately. When he pulls away, Rukia lets out a loud contented sigh as she smiles at him.

"This is the way it should be. We were meant to be a family, Ichigo." Rukia whispers happily to him, and Ichigo nods his agreement.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." He tells her before he kisses her again.

_Everything is as it should be, I have Rukia and my future family with her. It feels so right._


	87. Let Your Feelings Show

_Let Your Feelings Show_

"Kuchiki! See me right after class!" The physical education teacher growls out near the end of gym. Rukia raises an eyebrow, but she nods her head.

When all of the other students going to the locker rooms, the teacher, who's name Rukia can't remember for the life of her leads her away from the locker rooms and into his office.

"Yes sensei, what did you want to see me about?" Rukia asks in her fake sweet school girl voice.

"You are failing. You don't put forth any effort in class, and you will not receive good marks. You may think that's no big deal, but failing marks look bad no matter where you get them." He lectures her, and Rukia tries not to drift off into her own thoughts.

_This man just doesn't get that I could care less about my grades here. I'm not here to receive a living human's education._

"I'm failing? That is unfortunate," Rukia manages in her fake sweet voice.

"Don't you care about how that will look to the universities?" The sensei asks with his voice climbing a few levels in volume. This is a different guy from the one who yelled at them after they got filmed on Don Kanonji's television show.

Rukia suddenly wonders if normal human girls actually care about this sort of thing, and by the sensei's tone, she assumes that it is in fact something that she should at least pretend to be concerned about.

"Oh yes, I care a great deal! Isn't there anything I can do to raise my grade before the end of the semester?" Rukia asks him in a sugary sweet voice. His gaze snaps at her suddenly, and Rukia feels taken aback by the way he's staring at her so intensely.

"There might be something that you can do." He finally says, a bit hesitantly. Rukia isn't sure what to make of this. Isn't it a good thing that she can raise her grade and not stand out so much as a strange human?

"There is? What is it?" Rukia asks innocently. The sensei appears to give her the once over before he stands up and walks around his desk to stand behind her. Rukia's mouth falls open when he sets his hands on her shoulders and starts to rub them.

"Let me think about that a minute." He says, as his hands start to dip towards her chest. Rukia doesn't even think about it. She quickly slides the chair back so that it shoves into him, as she pushes his hands off of her, and she jumps to her feet.

"I hardly think that should require you touching me." Rukia tells him in a deadly calm voice. She feels shocked on so many levels when the sensei boldly shoves the chair out of the way and takes a large step towards her. She wonders if he's trying to be imposing.

_What a horrible time to not have the memory modifying device on me. I should refrain from taking his life. He's just a pathetic human._

"If you want to pass, you shouldn't argue or raise your voice to me." He says in a hard voice before he reaches out to touch her again. Rukia jumps back out of his reach and glares at him.

"Then don't touch me." Rukia says as she enunciates each word so that he clearly gets her meaning. "Surely you can say what you need to say without invading my physical space." Rukia says in a hard voice.

"You should learn to be a bit more respectful when speaking to your elders." The man has the audacity to say. He quickly reaches out to grab Rukia and she retaliates by jamming her knee into his crotch. He holds his groin and moans in pain and Rukia walks around him to be near the door.

"I'd rather fail than to stand here in the same room with you for one more second. You're a disgusting pig, and a horrible excuse for a sensei." Rukia says as she grabs the handle of the door.

"Kuchiki!" The sensei shouts, and Rukia freezes involuntarily at the harshness in his voice as he says her name. She turns around slowly.

"What?" Rukia snaps.

"If you don't want to fail, you should take off your clothes." The teacher says, and Rukia's mouth fall open. She was sure she had put him in enough pain that this should not be on his mind. She's about to reply, but she's knocked aside by the door flying open and Ichigo barging in.

"Care to repeat that?" Ichigo asks as he flies at the teacher and grabs him.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says, but she realizes she should go and get the device, right now.

"Kurosaki?" The sensei says as he glares at Ichigo for grabbing him.

Ichigo doesn't notice Rukia flying out of the room because his attention is on the teacher, who he just heard on the other side of the door ordering Rukia to take off her clothes if she wants a passing grade.

"Don't think I didn't just hear what you said to Rukia!" Ichigo growls angrily at the teacher.

"You can get expelled for attacking a teacher!" He threatens, but Ichigo pays no attention to his threats.

"You can get fired for ordering an underage student to remove her clothes for a passing grade!" Ichigo shoots back, before he lets his angry fist fly at the disgusting man's nose.

The teacher smacks the ground and sees stars as he lays there. Rukia comes rushing back in the room with the memory modifying device and Ichigo glances at her.

"Ichigo, let me take care of this." Rukia instructs him, and Ichigo nods as Rukia replaces the teacher's memory. When he next looks at them, he smiles at Rukia.

"Ah, my star student!" He says as he beams at Rukia. Ichigo's eyes widen and he wonders if Rukia didn't overdo it a bit.

"I'm sorry to rush out, but I have to hurry home." Rukia lies as she and Ichigo quickly dash out of his office. Ichigo gives her a sideways look. He can't believe what that guy said to her before she modified his memory.

"Rukia, what he did, wasn't okay." Ichigo tells her in a voice that reveals his true anger. Rukia grins at him.

"I know. That's why I kneed him in the nuts." Rukia says, smirking. Ichigo sighs.

"We should have just gotten him fired. He shouldn't be allowed near students if he's as immoral as that." Ichigo mutters at her. Rukia's eyes widen.

"We can still get him fired. I just have to modify the memories of the principal, and make him believe that he overheard the sensei's comments." Rukia says slowly. Ichigo shakes his head at her.

"You want to modify the principal's memory?" Ichigo asks in disbelief.

"There's no other way to get him fired. Do you want him fired or don't you?" Rukia asks in confusion, and she watches as he scowls angrily.

"I want him fired. I can't believe he said that to you. What a creep." Ichigo says furiously.

"What were you doing outside of the door anyways? You nearly knocked me on my ass when you barged in like that." Rukia says as she looks up at him. Ichigo blushes.

"I was worried about you, and so I was waiting for you to get out of there." Ichigo mutters at her.

Rukia's eyes widen. He knows just as well as she does that there's no reason to feel concerned over a mere human, she can take them on easily.

"You were worried…about me?" Rukia asks in amazement.

"I always worry about you," Ichigo growls in embarrassment. Rukia smiles and stops walking, which causes Ichigo to stop too. They're right outside the ladies locker room entrance, and Rukia grins up at him.

"I'll be right back." She tells him before she dashes in to change into her normal clothes at top speed. When she comes back out, they go to leave, and for once the schoolyard isn't teaming with other students.

For the first time ever, Rukia grabs Ichigo's hand and holds it as they walk along, and they both turn red, but he squeezes her hand a little bit, and he doesn't let go.

Rukia finally stops blushing, and smiles radiantly as they walk home. She glances at him once in awhile, and she can tell that he's happy too. She figures she'll go and modify the principal's memory tonight and get the man fired from his job first thing tomorrow.

She'll do it, since it will make Ichigo happy. She glances at him again and gives him a huge smile, but she doesn't tell him what she's thinking as he smiles back at her.

_It's nice when you let your feelings show_.


	88. As Requested: Slaying Zangetsu

**A/N- This one is about when Ichigo actually gains his bankai. It's also dedicated to the reviewer who had requested more deleted scenes in Bleach. I like to do those too, enjoy!**

_Slaying Zangetsu_

"Not yet!" Ichigo shouts as he grabs the sword out of the ground and exudes a lot of reiatsu. He and Zangetsu fly at one another, and Ichigo can feel it, that he's found the right one, made from the piece of his heart that is just for fighting.

_I will save you no matter what, Rukia!_

Ichigo fends off Zangetsu until he sees a tiny opening. He exploits the opening and puts his blade up against Zangetsu's neck and then he makes the cut to slay Zangetsu. The body of Zangetsu disappears, and suddenly the old man appears directly behind Ichigo, unarmed, and on one knee.

"You have defeated me, but I still need you to do one more thing." Zangetsu tells Ichigo, who looks panicked since they're practically out of time.

"What?" Ichigo asks desperately.

"I need you to tell me right now, the partner who fights along side of you, why you need bankai now." Zangetsu tells Ichigo as he gives him a piercing look.

"I need bankai to save Rukia's life, and to stop her brother from taking her life! She saved me...and I love her." Ichigo answers in a quiet but sure voice. Zangetsu almost grins at Ichigo's honesty.

"I promise you then, that I will give you the power to break her brother's resolve to kill her, with your own two hands. If it is your deepest desire to save her life, then it is my deepest desire as well. Show me the slash attack." Zangetsu says, and Ichigo concentrates on his resolve before he swings his sword and gets the results that he was looking for. "You have finally learned to fire it of your own free will, then I shall tell you, Ichigo, the amount of power it can generate can come to vary greatly once you know the name. The name of that slash attack is Getsuga Tenshou." Zangetsu tells Ichigo.

"Getsuga Tenshou." Ichigo echoes in a whisper.

Ichigo breathes hard and listens to everything that the old man has to say, and then he's given the words to release his bankai.

"Remember how closely your heart and your blade are connected, remember that, before you say the words. To fully release your bankai, you should say Tensa Zangetsu. Then, you will have a far superior speed than Kuchiki Byakuya." Zangetsu tells Ichigo, whose eyes widen in surprise. "You will be able to move against your opponents like I was moving against you the past two days. You'll move so fast they'll feel like they're being attacked by more than one of you. You'll be able to bat away his cherry blossom technique easily." Zangetsu explains.

Zangetsu actually looks a little bit proud of Ichigo as he explains all that Ichigo needs to know for the fight to save Rukia.

Yoruichi drags him over to the healing hot spring and shoves him inside with his robes still on. Ichigo peels off the upper robe, but leaves his pants on. The wounds all seem to disappear and as he steps out, Yoruichi wraps him in gauze in about two seconds, much in the same way she stopped Byakuya's sword on the bridge. Before Zangetsu goes back to complete sword form, he has one more thing to say to Ichigo as he's putting his robe back on.

"Zangetsu." Ichigo says in a voice filled with determination. Zangetsu bows his head.

"We must go, and save Rukia. Remember that you're not fighting alone." Zangetsu says, before he disappears, and Ichigo's hand tightens on his zanpakutou, which is now in his hands.

"That's right Zangetsu. We won't let Rukia die." Ichigo says, before Yoruichi throws a cape around him.

"You have to go right now or you'll be too late! With this, you can fly! Go...now!" Yoruichi tells him, and Ichigo doesn't hesitate. He puts Zangetsu on his back and hurries out of the training area.

When he flies out of the barrier, he can already see the released Soukyoku far off in the distance. When he sees it start to fly at Rukia, he is able to make it the rest of the way in one step, to block the attack on Rukia. She looks in desperate need of saving. Ichigo smiles, a truly happy smile since he made it in time to save the girl he loves, and he has a bankai because of her too.

_I made it in time, and now I can save you, Rukia!_


	89. As Requested: Believe

**A/N- This one shot is supposed to take place during and just after Rukia and Renji's conversation right after Ichigo rescued her from being obliterated by the released blade of the Soukyoku. It's also dedicated to the reviewer who asked for more deleted scenes a while back, since whenever I watch Bleach, I get inspired to do these kinds of stories. So two in a row for that person:)**

_Believe_

"For once, just believe in him, Rukia." Renji says firmly, and Rukia feels the tears building up in her eyes. She still wants to help Ichigo…leaving him there with all of those captains to fight alone is too much for her heart to handle it all, but Renji is telling her to believe in him!

_He knows! He knows I am in love with Ichigo! I want to believe in Ichigo, but even more than that I want him to live. If he dies to save me, I'll never forgive myself. It must be hard for Renji…I've long suspected that he is in love with me._

"I'm sorry, Renji." Rukia says, as she grabs his robes, in order to apologize for any heartbreak that he experiences because of her. She feels Renji squeeze her a bit.

"Idiot…don't be sorry." Renji tells her in a low voice, and that lets her know that she has her friend back, even if she has fallen in love with Ichigo. She feels a tear fall down her face.

"Thank you…" Rukia says, moved that he supports her decision, even though it isn't him.

"Idiot. Don't thank me either." Renji tells her with a smile. He's only wanted for Rukia to be happy. If Ichigo makes her happy then there's no way he'll hold it against her. At least he has his friend back.

Rukia feels more tears falling as she accepts the comfort that her oldest friend is offering her right now.

"I don't want anyone to die for my sake." Rukia finally mutters to him, and Renji just scoffs at her.

"He doesn't want you dying for his sake either." Renji informs her. "As long as he's good to you, I won't interfere." Renji says under his breath. Rukia's crying so hard that she doesn't hear the last part of what he said.

"Do you really think he can win…against ni-sama?" Rukia finally asks Renji, tearfully.

"We swore on our souls to save you Rukia. He even managed to defeat Captain Zaraki." Renji replies in a firm voice, and Rukia's eyes widen at that bit of information.

"Captain Zaraki?!" Rukia utters in complete amazement.

"He worked…like a man obsessed to be able to obtain the power necessary in order to be able to save you. He's much more powerful than he used to be." Renji tells her. Rukia knows this firsthand. She watched him destroy the cross of the Soukyoku.

"You were there?" Rukia asks him, just barely loud enough for him to hear her. Renji smiles a little, and nods his head yes at her.

"It's insane…how much power he has. I could also easily see…just how much he loves you." Renji tells her in a low voice, and Rukia's mouth falls open a little at that. She hates how her heart seems to have started flip flopping around in her chest.

"Renji." Rukia says, moved by her friend's speech.

"You're special to a lot of people, Rukia. Your time to die isn't now. We'll put our own lives on the line to ensure that." Renji tells her with a comforting grin. She doesn't want to make Renji yell, and so she doesn't say what she's thinking.

_I'm not worth saving. Not after what I did to Kaien-dono. How can I be worth saving, worth lives being risked?_

Renji looks down at her and sees the doubt in her eyes. He doesn't know what else to say to make her feel better. He remembers watching Ichigo train for his bankai…and Renji knows that if she had seen that, she would understand, exactly why Ichigo did what he did.

_Believe in your love, Rukia…your life means far more to him than his own ever will. I know just how deeply he loves you, even if he never said those exact words to me. _

_He wouldn't have gone through such hellish training if you didn't mean the world to him._


	90. As Requested: Rukia's Secret 2

_**A/N- This is a sequel to Rukia's Secret, it was done by request, and yes it's a lemon. I hope you enjoy! Reminder-ALL requested stories are dedicated to those who request them! I actually finished 3 for one day, so I'm happy now.**_

_Rukia's Secret 2_

When Rukia walks into Ichigo's bedroom wearing her new pink bunny pajamas, and slippers, Ichigo realizes she looks so cute in short shorts. The pajama top is a halter top style, and the white rabbits all over it aren't really his style, but she pulls it off well.

"I love these pajamas and slippers!" Rukia says again, before she grins and takes a seat next to Ichigo on his bed. He realizes his heart is pounding hard in his chest when she settles so close next to him.

"I'm glad you love them. You look really good." Ichigo tells her with a blush creeping up his cheeks. Rukia blushes in response.

"Thanks." Rukia tells him with a soft smile.

"I wouldn't mind seeing you dance around in that outfit," Ichigo tells her, and Rukia swats at his arm.

"Shut up!" Rukia says with a giggle. She doesn't feel any embarrassment anymore, since she has already shared a few kisses with Ichigo, since he returned home with the presents to bribe her for her forgiveness.

"I'm serious!" Ichigo tells her, still blushing even as he imagines her doing a sexy little dance for him in her new pajamas.

"I had no idea you were such a pervert under all that shyness." Rukia says with a smile, even though she's still blushing too.

"I'm not a pervert!" Ichigo protests, and Rukia giggles again.

Ichigo grabs her around the waist and pulls her into his lap, and Rukia smiles even as she feels like her heart pounding incredibly hard at the feeling of sitting in his lap with his arms around her.

"You're not?" Rukia asks him innocently, and Ichigo thinks that she has never been more irresistible in all the time that he's known her. He kisses her cheek a few times and then breathes into her ear as he replies to her.

"Well…maybe a little." He admits before he starts to run his hands freely up and down her back.

Rukia leans in and starts to suck on his neck, and Ichigo loves it. She moves her mouth around a lot to avoid giving him a hickey, since she had always thought it was tacky when people would leave visible marks of their intimate affairs.

Ichigo lets out a moan and Rukia pulls away, and her lips are immediately caught by Ichigo's lips, and he kisses her deeply.

"You're good at that," Rukia whispers when he pulls away and she takes a few deep breaths, since he's got her heart pounding at a much faster rate than usual.

Ichigo grins, he's glad that she likes what he's doing, since he's never done these things with anyone else in his life before. He thinks that as long as they go slow, it won't feel so awkward.

"I like holding you like this." Ichigo whispers to her, and Rukia smiles hugely.

"Me too," Rukia says before she leans in and kisses him again.

Ichigo doesn't protest. He kisses her back and lays back on his bed, pulling Rukia down with him, so that she's basically laying all over him as they kiss. It's not uncomfortable in the least bit, and that's definitely an upside to her being so petite.

Now that she's laying on him, he runs his hands down her back and over her cute butt. He can feel her tremble a little bit as he touches her. He lets his hands slowly go down to her thighs before he runs them back up over her butt and up her back and then he massages her shoulder and neck as they kiss.

Rukia presses her body against his, enjoying the feel of Ichigo's body underneath her. All of these new and exciting feelings have her feeling as though she's on some sort of euphoric drug. Her whole body is tingling with excitement, and when Ichigo runs his hands all over her back like he was just doing, it makes her shiver with excitement.

She can feel how turned on he is, since she's laying on his front side, and it makes her feel very attractive. The way he's looking at her, and reacting to her makes her aware of how much she actually affects him, and that makes her feel really good.

Rukia puts her hands on his arms and squeezes his muscles, which are taut right now, since he instinctively tightened up his muscles when her hands landed on his arms. They both moan a little bit as they kiss, and both of them are breathing more and more heavily once they pull away.

Ichigo slowly starts to ease the halter top up her back and he lets his hands touch her bare back once he's gotten in up quite a bit. Rukia's back to sucking on his neck, and Ichigo is sure he's experiencing something wondrous, as the sensations she's giving him are more amazing than he ever could have imagined.

He rolls her over onto her back and he climbs on top of her before he leans down to kiss her again, and Rukia reaches up to run her hands under his shirt, across his stomach, and up his chest. She's never been able to touch him so freely in the past, and she's yearned for it more than she'll ever admit.

Ichigo shimmies her halter top up high enough that he's exposed her chest, and he stares at her as though she's the most sexy thing he's ever seen in his life for a minute before he yanks off his shirt and leans back down over her to kiss her again.

Rukia doesn't even feel self-conscious right now. The pure look of adoration that he gave her after he pushed her halter top up had affected her more than he would ever know. She had never imagined that he might look at her with so much desire and love all in the space of an instant.

He has to be the perfect man for her, to look at her in that way, and to love her in that way. His body slowly lowers over hers, but he finds he can't get comfortable as long as they're laying on the bed sideways.

Ichigo grabs Rukia up in his arms and positions her on the bed normally, and he fluffs the pillow under her head before he lays on top of her to kiss her some more.

Now that she has access to his back, she starts to rub him in the same way that he was rubbing her. She slowly runs her hands up and down his sexy muscular back and then she lets them rest on his very scrumptious rear end, where she squeezes his butt cheeks a bit and she feels Ichigo deepening the kiss as she does that.

He pulls away and rolls over to the side, so that he isn't continually crushing her and he rests his cheek on his palm with his elbow on the bed right next to her as he stares at her. He runs his other hand around her smooth and soft skin and watches her expression as he touches her. He has never known Rukia like this, and he wants to know what makes her react, what turns her on.

"Rukia, I had no idea you could drive me so crazy." Ichigo whispers to her as he takes in the sight of her half naked body.

"I love you, Ichigo." Rukia whispers, and Ichigo feels like he's just won the lottery.

"I love you too, Rukia. More than you even know." Ichigo whispers back. Rukia smiles at him.

"I want to know." She tells him in a flirtatious voice. He leans down to kiss her. When he pulls away, he gives her a serious look.

"I'll do everything I can, to show you." Ichigo whispers, and Rukia shivers at the excitement those words bring to her. For someone so inexperienced, he sure does well when he simply speaks from the heart.

"Then I'll just love you more." Rukia assures him, and Ichigo can't help but to smile at that.

He stops resting on his palm and he leans over to kiss her belly button. He kisses every inch of visible skin on the top half of her body, and Rukia is feeling more than turned on before he's even halfway finished with that quest. She runs her fingers through his hair and pulls on it a bit whenever he starts to suck on her skin a little bit. She had no idea his mouth on her skin, would feel _this_ good.

Ichigo feels himself getting lost in her, and he doesn't think he's ever had a more enjoyable feeling in his life. The only moment that even comes close, is when he saved her life at Soukyoku. That had been a fantastic feeling, but touching and kissing her is even better.

Rukia doesn't think she's ever felt more intense feelings in her life, being in the shelter of Ichigo's arms as he kisses her all over and makes her feel like she's completely special.

She never knew that she could get so much excitement from simple mutual touching and kissing. His lips are far softer than they ever looked as they run up and down her skin. She never knew that being with a man could feel so good and satisfying.

Ichigo starts to slide off her short shorts, and he's pleasantly surprised when he doesn't find any underwear underneath her shorts. Rukia blushes as everything is exposed to him now. He tosses her shorts onto his desk and he relieves her of her halter top completely and he stares in wonder at the gorgeous naked girl in his bed that he has fallen totally in love with.

He doesn't take off his pants yet, instead he works on kissing the lower half of her body. Rukia's muscles clench and unclench as he brings waves of pleasure to her body unlike any she's ever known before.

She closes her eyes and lets out soft little moans of pleasure with each inch of her skin that his lips brush past. He is running his hands up and down her thighs and calves, as he's kissing her hips and his mouth is slowly but surely moving to the most sensitive place on her body, and she sucks in her breath with excited and nervous anticipation at where his lips might travel to next.

When he finds that special place, his tongue flicks out and she loudly gasps at this strange and dizzying sensation that is ripping through her body with the most minimal of provocation.

"Ichigo!" Rukia gasps out, since she doesn't think she can take this sweet torture for very long…it's so intense she is sure her entire body is buzzing from the sensations that he's bringing to her in endless waves of ecstasy.

He groans at her reaction. It's enough to make him feel like he can't wait too much longer to make love to her. She has slowly overtaken him, and he feels like he's at the boiling point as he gets off of her and takes off his pants. It's a bit embarrassing since Rukia stares in curiosity as his pants fall around his ankles, and her gaze doesn't budge even as his hands go to the waistband of his boxers.

Ichigo is bright red as he pulls down his boxers, and he doesn't miss how her mouth falls open. Her gaze immediately goes to his eyes, and he thinks it's totally cute that she looks worried.

"Rukia…" Ichigo whispers as he sits back down on the bed. He watches as her gaze lowers to his arousal and then darts back to his face. She bites her lip and gives him a quizzical look. She doesn't want to ask him what she's thinking, but as her gaze drops back down, she can't help but wonder if making love to him is a physical impossibility.

"Ichigo?" Rukia gives him a worried look, and he gives her a loving smile.

"Kiss me…" Ichigo whispers, and Rukia gladly complies. Once they pull away, he climbs back on top of her and they kiss some more. Rukia enjoys the feeling of his butt without any clothes in her way and she really enjoys squeezing it. It seems he likes it too, and he leans back down to kiss her before he wedges a knee in between her legs and slowly uses his legs to spread hers apart.

Rukia's so focused on kissing him, that she doesn't notice this important act, and she gasps in shock when she feels his arousal between her legs. He's not inside of her, but he's rubbing against her on the outside, and it feels really good to her. She closes her eyes and gets lost in the foreplay, and he kisses her shoulders and breasts, and neck, before he moves back up to her lips.

He slowly and gently starts to push inside of her and Rukia takes a deep breath in, and he can feel her tightening up all around him. He thinks that can't be good, that she's suddenly all tense, and so he stops pushing. He leans in to kiss her, and she's receptive to that.

He waits until she starts to loosen up again, before he starts to slowly push in again, and this time it seems like she doesn't get quite as tense, even though he can slowly feel it returning. He stops when he feels the barrier of her virginity.

There isn't much he can do but to make it as quick and painless as possible for her and so he kisses her even more deeply before he takes one hard thrust inside of her. He feels her entire body flinch, and he thinks he just entered another dimension, it feels that amazing to be inside of her. He lifts his face away from hers to look into her eyes, and she meets his eyes.

"You're amazing." Ichigo breathes as he looks at her. She gives him a tiny smile, and her eyes light up with love as she stares into his eyes.

"So this is making love." Rukia whispers back to him, and he smiles at her.

"Are you okay?" Ichigo asks her tenderly. He really wants to move, but he'll get permission first.

"Yeah…I'm okay." Rukia tells him, even as she feels amazement at the sensation that she is actually making love to him, and he is inside of her.

"Do you want to keep going?" Ichigo whispers with an almost pained look in his eyes. Rukia's eyes widen.

"There's more?" She whispers back in amazement. She knew what sex was, but she thought that they had already done that. Ichigo grins at her.

"There won't be a lot more this time, since I'm new at this…but yeah." Ichigo confirms. Rukia gives him a look of complete amazement before she nods her head.

"Then we should definitely keep going." Rukia whispers, and Ichigo gets this look on his face unlike any other she's ever seen on him before. He's looking at her as though she's miracle or something.

"I love you, Rukia." Ichigo says, just before he starts to move. Rukia had every intention of saying she loved him back, but the rush of sensations brought on by having him move inside of her for the first time makes her forget her train of thought.

Ichigo knows as he makes love to her, that he'll never give her up, not in a million years.

When he finds his release, he lets out a loud and long moan, and Rukia seems mesmerized by the look in his face. She'd never tell him, but the look could only be described as helpless and completely at her mercy.

He falls against her and hugs her tight.

"Wow." Rukia says in a very soft and amazed voice. Ichigo can't help but agree.

"I'm glad we made love, Rukia." Ichigo tells her before he kisses her cheek, which is in front of his face.

"Me too. I didn't know touching you and being touched by you could make me feel so much." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo hugs her tighter.

"I never want to be touched by anybody but you." Ichigo tells her in her ear, and Rukia smiles at that.

"And I never want to be touched by anybody but you," Rukia tells him back, and Ichigo smiles.

He closes his eyes and he is greeted by his inner hollow and Zangetsu who both appear to be pleased. Ichigo stares around in shock at his inner world, where snow has begun to fall. Zangetsu steps forward.

"You know, I never liked the rain…but I love the snow." Zangetsu tells Ichigo, who smiles in agreement. His inner hollow winks at him.

"What can I say? When the old man is right, he's right." The inner hollow says with a laugh before he sticks his tongue out to catch a piece of falling snow. Ichigo can hardly believe even his inner hollow seems quite subdued, as a result of making love to Rukia.

"I'm glad you like it, because it's going to be like Christmas around here all year long," Ichigo predicts with a grin.

Ichigo opens his eyes and looks at the most important person in the world to him with a loving smile.

"What are you thinking?" Rukia asks him with a curious look. Ichigo grins at her.

"I'm thinking about how everything feels right now that I have your love." Ichigo tells her before he kisses her again.

_I love the snow Rukia…and I love you._


	91. As Requested: Let Your Feelings Show 2

_**A/N-This is a continuation of chapter 87, Let Your Feelings Show, it is done by request and is dedicated to the reviewer who requested it.**_

_Let Your Feelings Show 2_

Ichigo had gone with Rukia last night to alter the principal's memories, and then they went to the teacher's house and altered his, too. When Rukia was finished with them, they were of the belief that the teacher had demanded that Rukia remove her clothes for a passing grade, and the principal had overheard it and walked in to take Rukia to his office to discuss exactly what the gym teacher had said. She also made sure that Ichigo was left out of both of the men's memories.

They had stopped holding hands when they had gotten in view of his house, and when they were alone in his bedroom, Ichigo had gotten pretty nervous, since he didn't know if things would immediately start changing now that he held her hand for the walk home. When it seemed like nothing was changing, Ichigo had actually gotten a bit frustrated.

When they had finished modifying the teacher and principal's memories, Ichigo had grabbed her hand and they had taken a leisurely walk home in their Shinigami forms. Rukia had to smother a smile when he did that. She knew that if she backed off for a little while, he'd realize he liked her attention more than he might have wanted to admit when they had gotten back home from school.

Rukia had climbed into the closet, and Ichigo had been left to lay in his bed, and think about what it would be like if she were in there with him.

Now they've just left his house for school today, and Ichigo is agonizing over whether or not he should hold her hand again, now that they'll be plainly visible to everyone, since it will cause rumors to fly like crazy.

While he's agonizing over that, Rukia trips over a rock on the sidewalk and twists her ankle a bit.

"Rukia…can you walk?" Ichigo asks her worriedly as her face scrunches up in apparent pain.

Rukia wonders what she should say. She could walk, but she'd rather he carry her, just because then his arms will be wrapped around her, and that is sure to be even better than just holding his hand.

"Maybe in a few minutes I can…" Rukia says haltingly, and Ichigo squats down to gather her into his arms. Rukia blushes when he stands and has a hold of her, and Ichigo gets a bit pink too.

"Let me know when you think you can put weight on it." Ichigo tells her quietly as he starts to walk.

Not even one minute after he's walking with her in his arms, they start to get noticed by other students headed to school. Ichigo does his best to ignore the gaping jaws and the pointing fingers, but he can't help but notice what a commotion they're creating. He tightens his hold on her a little bit.

"Thank you for carrying me," Rukia tells him softly. She of course hasn't noticed any of the looks, because she's been staring up at him. Ichigo glances at her and then grins.

"Sure." Ichigo says, even though he can't completely lose his grin. It really doesn't matter who stares and points, because he enjoys this closeness with her.

When they're halfway to school, a car pulls up to the side of the road by them and screeches to a halt. The gym teacher gets out of his car and stalks towards them.

"You got me fired" The teacher shouts as he advances more quickly. Ichigo quickly sets Rukia down on her feet and she puts most of her weight on her good foot and Ichigo steps directly in front of her. The former gym teacher stops for a second when Ichigo does that.

"You got yourself fired when you stepped over the line with her." Ichigo says as he watches the man closely. The former teacher glares at Ichigo and then steps forward again.

"Don't defend that lying bitch. She's-" The former teacher is cut off by Ichigo's fist flying into his face. Rukia's eyes widen as Ichigo kicks the man so hard he lands on his ass, and Ichigo is all over him, punching him in the face.

"She's not the liar you sick fucker!" Ichigo yells as he pulls back and punches him again. "You are the one who tried to bribe a student into removing her clothes, and who knows what else you had in mind, if you actually would have gotten her to remove her clothes!" Ichigo shouts before he punches the man again.

"Ichigo! You should stop-" Rukia starts to say, but it's too late.

A police officer happened to drive by and pulled over to break up the fight. Rukia immediately starts digging in her bag for her memory modifier and she gets it out just in the nick of time. Within moments, she and Ichigo are back on their way to school, with her in his arms, and the former teacher is being escorted to jail.

Ichigo doesn't bother to mention to her that she moved just fine when she used her modifier on the men, because he realizes she likes him carrying her as much as he likes to carry her.

"What a piece of shit that man was." Ichigo grumbles, as he looks at Rukia. He can't believe that man had the nerve to call Rukia the liar.

"Thanks for everything, Ichigo." Rukia tells him as she tightens her arms around his neck. Ichigo's eyes seem to warm up as he looks at her and grins.

"You're welcome." Ichigo tells her, and he feels stupid because he can't seem to stop smiling. It's a nice change of pace, Rukia just acting like a girl, and letting him take care of her.

When Ichigo carries Rukia into their classroom, several people gasp and gape in shock at the picture they make. They look like a couple that just fell in love.

Inoue blinks twice at them in shock as her expression falls. She's fairly certain that he has never told Kuchiki-san that he thought she'd be heavier than what she was, as he lifted her in his arms. She has nightmares about that moment. How Kurosaki-kun could ruin something that should have been her dream come true, is still a mystery to her. Nel hadn't helped either, yelling at him and telling him he shouldn't say that stuff to girls, even if they're really, really heavy. Inoue looks away so that the pain isn't so obvious.

Ichigo gently sets Rukia in her seat, and she blushes a little bit at how his hand slides across her leg, as he's pulling his arm back.

"Kuchiki-san! I heard that Saitou-sensei got fired, because of you!" Keigo says loudly as Ichigo sits in his seat. Ichigo immediately jumps out of his seat.

"He got fired because of himself!" Ichigo corrects Keigo, who just nods with wide eyes at Ichigo's obvious ire.

"Sure…" Keigo finally says as he bobs his head up and down. Everybody else in the class has quieted down to listen to the exchange.

"He made an inappropriate offer to me," Rukia explains, and Ichigo glares at Keigo.

"Oh. I didn't know." Keigo says, before he backs away, and heads for his seat.

"Then he deserved to be fired." Mizuiro says with a friendly smile. Ichigo sits back down.

"Damn straight." Ichigo mutters.

"So are you and Kuchiki-san an item now?" Mizuiro asks, getting an immediate blush out of Rukia and Ichigo. Mizuiro grins as Ichigo glances around and realizes everyone is waiting for his answer.

"Pretty much," Ichigo says, in a loud enough voice for everyone to hear, and Rukia looks down at her desk with her hair covering her face from the others, and she smiles hugely.

"Congratulations." Mizuiro says, with a huge grin.

"You look good together," Chizuru sings out with a big smile.

"Thanks." Rukia and Ichigo both say, and Sado grins at that. He knew it was only a matter of time before they finally became a couple.

Rukia can't seem to stop blushing, or feeling deliriously happy. She glances at the orange haired teen of her dreams.

_Nothing is better than being together with Ichigo._


	92. As Requested: Talk About Bankai

**A/N- I was asked to do a sequel to chapter 88 where Rukia finds out about what happened in that chapter. **

**This is dedicated to the person who requested it, although it's not really a missing scene, since I don't imagine that this type of discussion has ever taken place between Rukia and Ichigo, although it would be sweet if it did. Please enjoy!**

_Talk About Bankai_

Rukia sighs as she lays in the closet. She has a decision to make. She can either live without knowing, or she can humble herself and talk to Ichigo. She never imagined when she gave him her powers, that he would actually surpass her own abilities as a Shinigami, particularly in such a short amount of time.

"My dances are very powerful, but he already has a bankai. I don't even know if I'll ever get to that point." Rukia mutters under her breath.

He's so powerful that he's categorized her as one of the people weaker than him that he has to constantly protect, and even though some might consider that sweet of him, she finds it a bit insulting.

_I want to be seen as his equal…after all, I know we're still connected. Just because he gained his own Shinigami powers doesn't mean we're not. I wonder if this is why transferring your powers to humans is against the law. I feel incomplete when I'm not here with him._

Rukia lets out a frustrated sigh and she slides open the closet door to peer out towards Ichigo's bed. She's a bit surprised to find him laying on his bed, facing the closet, with his eyes open and just staring at her once the door is open.

"Rukia." Ichigo's voice is fairly soft in the night. She's supposed to be in the bedroom with his sisters, but she snuck out after they fell asleep and came to lay in Ichigo's closet, where she feels much more at ease.

Rukia sits up and hops out of the closet to go and stand next to the bed. She wants to sit in it with him, but if he snaps at her because of it, she may not be able to talk with him, and so she grabs his desk chair and slides it over next to the bed before she sits down and gazes at him with a serious look in her eyes.

"Ichigo…I'm glad you weren't asleep." Rukia tells him, as she takes a deep breath. Ichigo's eyes widen a bit, and he suddenly feels quite nervous. He had been able to feel Rukia's hesitation about something before she ever slid open the closet door, and for some reason, he's feeling very cornered.

"Why aren't you asleep?" Ichigo asks her, in a questioning voice. Rukia shakes her head and sighs a bit loudly.

"I had some things on my mind." Rukia replies in a bit of a sad voice. Ichigo sits up in bed and adjusts his pillow to be behind his back. He rubs his eyes a little bit and he stares at her.

"What kinds of things?" Ichigo asks nervously, since he's fairly certain she had been thinking about him in some sort of capacity. He had been able to feel it. It never fails to amaze him, just how connected they have stayed to one another.

"My limitations with my abilities. I have multiple shikai techniques, and they're all very powerful. I wonder if I'll ever attain bankai." Rukia says, with her voice sounding a bit sorrowful.

"Why do you need a bankai?" Ichigo asks, not really understanding it. She's a fearsome opponent without a bankai, particularly with her kidou abilities. All one had to do was look at how the ninth Espada ended up to know that.

"Uh…" Rukia trails off, and blushes. She isn't ready to admit to him that the reason she wants a bankai is so that he can have faith in her, as the strong woman who stands next to him. She looks at him and narrows her eyes a little bit. "Why shouldn't I want to attain bankai?" Rukia finally asks, not understanding why he'd ask her that.

"I never said that you shouldn't want to, but why are you thinking about it so much?" Ichigo asks. He's not ready to admit to her that he doesn't want her to attain a bankai, and be so strong that she feels she doesn't need him anymore. Rukia won't look him in the eye now, and that bothers him.

"You attained bankai." Rukia finally says, in a quiet voice. Ichigo's eyes widen a little bit at that. He doesn't want to tell her what he's thinking.

_I only obtained it because of you._

"I don't know why that matters." Ichigo grumbles as he crosses his arms, wondering why that makes any sort of difference.

"We're partners, right?" Rukia asks him in a pained voice. Ichigo slowly meets her eyes, and nods his head yes.

"Of course we are." Ichigo says in a firm voice.

"Then tell me…exactly how you were able to obtain bankai." Rukia asks him in almost a pleading voice. Ichigo sighs. This isn't a discussion he wants to have. If they have this discussion, she'll know he could have never become as strong as he's become without her…but it's not like he can avoid the discussion either.

"Urahara-san invented a doll that you stab your zanpakutou through, and it forcibly materializes your zanpakutou. When I stabbed Zangetsu in, he appeared and materialized so many swords, I couldn't even tell you how many there were. He said they were all pieces of my heart, and that I had to find the one that was made just for fighting and slay him with it." Ichigo says in a quiet voice. "He said that was the only way to force him into submission to tell me how to achieve bankai," Ichigo finishes. Rukia nods her head.

"I had no idea that such an invention even existed." Rukia admits, even as she tries to picture what Ichigo's training must have looked like.

"It took two and a half days to finally do it." Ichigo mutters, dreading what he'll have to admit next.

"So you were able to slay him, and that's how you got your bankai?" Rukia asks with wide eyes.

"Not exactly." Ichigo says, even as he wonders if he should just keep it secret. He decides it's better to just be upfront about it.

"What do you mean?" Rukia asks in confusion.

"After I was able to slay him, he reappeared behind me, and he told me I needed to do one more thing to obtain bankai." Ichigo says in a near whisper, even as he feels totally embarrassed at what he'll have to admit next.

"What was that?" Rukia asks curiously.

"I had to tell him why I wanted it." Ichigo says in a tight voice, even as he remembers his heartfelt confession to Zangetsu.

"Oh. Well what did you tell him?" Rukia asks, even as she notices how nervous he's become.

"I told him, I needed bankai to save your life, and to stop your brother from taking your life, because you saved me and…" Ichigo trails off. His throat feels tight, and his insides feel like they're tying into knots.

"And?" Rukia prods, finding herself very interested in what he'll say next.

"And…um…because I love you." Ichigo finally whispers before he turns bright red and turns away from her. He doesn't miss her shocked gasp at that confession.

"Ichigo!" Rukia utters in amazement. She feels more touched than she could have ever thought possible at hearing this story.

Ichigo slowly calms down, and he turns his head to look at her. Her eyes are all huge, and it looks like they're filling up with tears.

"Sorry." Ichigo whispers, even as he bites his lip.

"For what?" Rukia asks in amazement, feeling very special that it was his intense feelings for her, that actually led to him gaining bankai.

"For telling you like that." Ichigo mutters, wondering if she'll even say anything about his huge confession.

"Don't be sorry…I asked." Rukia tells him, even as she stares at him with a couple of tears working their way down her cheeks.

"So…why do you want a bankai?" Ichigo asks, even as he's still feeling a bit embarrassed. Rukia no longer feels a need to keep this information to herself, now that she knows what she knows.

"So that you can fully count on me as the woman who stands next to you." Rukia whispers, and Ichigo's eyes snap at her own, even as he realizes she must only feel this way because she loves him too.

"I do count on you…completely." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia slides off the chair and onto the bed, and she doesn't miss Ichigo sucking in his breath quickly at her doing that either.

"I count on you too…and thank you." Rukia whispers as she stares at his face. Ichigo can't stand to see the tears on her cheeks anymore, so he relaxes his crossed arm position, and he reaches out to wipe them off of her cheeks.

"Your welcome." Ichigo tells her, before he yanks her into his arms to hold her close.

"I love you, Ichigo." Rukia says against his chest, and Ichigo smiles a big genuine smile.

"I'm happy." Ichigo tells her in a low voice even as he tightens his hold around her. "More than you even realize." Ichigo says before he leans down to kiss the top of her head.

_Not as happy as I am…knowing you obtained your bankai as a direct result of loving me makes me feel more powerful than I ever did before. Thank you, Ichigo._


	93. As Requested: Overtaken

_**A/N-I had a request to do an angst story for Ichigo & Rukia, and so this is dedicated to the loyal reviewer who requested it, it takes place after Gin, Aizen, and Tousen are believed to be dead. Enjoy!**_

_Overtaken_

Ichigo looks around, since he knows he can sense a strong reiatsu around. Rukia hasn't caught up to him yet, but he knows she'll be there soon.

Suddenly the owner of the reiatsu shows himself, and Ichigo's mouth drops open in complete shock at seeing the man who has appeared before him.

"Bastard…you're still alive? I thought you were dead!" Ichigo growls at the former captain, Ichimaru Gin.

"That was the plan. That was the power of Aizen's zanpakutou." Gin says with a tight grin as he pulls his zanpakutou out of its sheath.

"So are you the only one who still lives, or are there more of you?" Ichigo asks warily.

"You don't need to know such things." Gin tells him with a smile.

"So why are you showing your face to me now? You ready to die?" Ichigo asks as he whips Zangetsu off of his back. "I'll kill you." Ichigo informs him next.

"Ichigo!" Rukia runs up from behind and Gin's smile grows even wider.

"I'm not going to die. I'm going to kill you, Kurosaki Ichigo, and then I'm going to take Kuchiki Rukia back with me to Hueco Mundo. I've always wanted her." Gin says with an evil smile. "Do you know how much I want to fuck her?" Gin asks Ichigo with the same evil smile still on his face.

Ichigo gets a hard and angry look on his face. Rukia's mouth drops open and her eyes look fearful. This man has always given her a sick feeling, ever since she first laid eyes on him.

"I don't believe it!" Rukia cries out as she stares in horror at the former captain who appears to be just fine, and not dead as everyone had previously believed.

"You aren't taking Rukia anywhere…motherfucker!" Ichigo shouts before he charges towards Gin. The former captain's smile just grows larger as he and Ichigo cross swords with one another.

"I'm going to do all of the things I've always wanted to do with her. I just want to squeeze that creamy white neck until she loses her noble cool." Gin shares with Ichigo in a soft and amused voice as Ichigo pushes harder.

"Bankai!" Ichigo shouts at the top of his lungs. Gin jumps back as Ichigo transforms. "Tensa Zangetsu!" Ichigo calls out after his zanpakutou and robes transform. Rukia backs a little further away, even though she doesn't lose her look of complete fear.

"Don't die…Ichigo!" Rukia says in a pained voice as she watches Ichigo fly at top speed and cut Gin in his arm. Blood sprays out generously.

"You're better than I thought. I guess I shouldn't have underestimated you…Kurosaki Ichigo." Gin says with an unconcerned smile.

"Bastard!" Ichigo hisses as he flies at Gin again. Gin dodges this time, since he realizes that the kid definitely possesses a higher speed than him.

"Shoot him to death, Shinsou" Gin says with a pleased grin, as Ichigo flies at him.

Ichigo side steps the growing sword and appears behind Gin, who is only able to barely dodge having his neck sliced up. His shoulder takes the force of Ichigo's attack, and some more blood sprays up.

"Sneaky bastard!" Ichigo growls, as Gin looks at his shoulder and frowns a bit.

"If things keep up like this, I won't be able to take her back with me. I so badly want to make her a real woman." Gin says with a sigh, causing Ichigo's face to turn absolutely frightening.

"That will never happen!" Ichigo shouts at the top of his lungs. "Getsuga Tenshou!" Ichigo shouts, sending a black Getsuga at Gin. The former captain's eyes widen a bit at the wave of power flying at him so quickly, and Gin holds his zanpakutou in front of him as he calls for his own bankai.

"Rain Down, Shinsou!" Ichimaru says, and Ichigo's eyes widen as it starts to rain down zanpakutous on him. He hears Rukia scream, but Ichigo can't do anything since several zanpakutous caught him in the chest. Ichigo feels like an ass. If he had known, he could have easily deflected every single blade that had come at him.

"Ichigo!" Rukia's scream is loud and heartbreaking. Ichigo's eyes begin to close on the sound of Gin's maniacal laughter. Rukia looks on from the distance at Ichigo's fallen and pierced body, and her eyes widen in complete horror when Gin uses shunpo to arrive at her side.

"He's dead honey, you're coming with me now. You have no reason to be here now that he's dead." Gin says even as Rukia jumps out of his reach.

"Don't touch me!" Rukia screeches out, even as she pulls Sode No Shirayuki from its sheath. "I'd rather die than to go with you!" Rukia tells him without a hint of hesitation in her voice. Gin smiles.

"You don't stand a chance against me." Gin tells her as he flies at her. Rukia holds up her sword, but Gin performs her brother's favorite technique and gets behind her with Senka, a specialized type of spinning shunpo. He cuts Sode No Shirayuki out of her hands with little to no effort, and he yanks her to his side by grabbing her by her hair.

Rukia screams, but her eyes widen when she notices Ichigo standing…and his mask looks totally different from what she had seen during their past battles…it only covers half of his face. The blades in his body all come popping out as if by magic, and the wounds on his chest heal in front of her eyes.

"You really are pathetic…Ichigo!" A strange voice comes from Ichigo's mouth.

Ichigo flies at her and Gin, and Rukia's eyes widen when Gin holds her in front of him like a shield. This doesn't stop Ichigo though, he slices his zanpakutou right through Rukia's chest and into Gin's head.

He slices so deep that he comes chest to chest with Rukia, who throws her arms around him and he yanks the zanpakutou out of Gin, but because Rukia threw her arms around him, it stays embedded in her. She stares up at Ichigo, who doesn't even look like Ichigo except for the orange hair, and she pulls his face in to kiss him. She does it instinctively, without even thinking about it. Ichigo's normal eyes come back as she kisses him.

The mask breaks away from his face as her kiss ends, and Ichigo stares in horror at the fact that he has Rukia impaled on Zangetsu, and Gin is dead behind her on the ground.

"Rukia!" Ichigo's eyes turn huge and frantic. "No!" Ichigo shouts out as he realizes what happened.

"Thanks for not letting him take me…" Rukia says, and it looks like she wanted to continue, but blood starts to come out of her mouth.

Ichigo doesn't think it's good to remove the zanpakutou, since it will mean more bleeding for her, and her eyes are open. He can't lay her on her back, because of the way his blade is in her, and so he holds her in his arms loosely to keep the blade from moving around.

"Rukia…never you! I never meant to hurt you!" Ichigo tells her in a pained and agonized voice.

"I know…" Rukia struggles to get it out, but more blood spills out of her mouth.

"What in the hell have I done? I would rather kill myself than to ever hurt you!" Ichigo says as tears start to fall down his face. He helps Rukia sit down and he sits next to her, just holding her up.

"Ichi-" Rukia tries to talk, but she just can't. Ichigo looks at her with complete worry and pain in his eyes.

"Damn it, you have to stay with me until Inoue gets here. She's on her way!" Ichigo tells Rukia, before he kisses her forehead and pushes her face onto his shoulders.

Ichigo hates it…hates it that she's in this condition because of him, and he hates that Inoue will come and find Rukia with Zangetsu piercing her. A great amount of shame begins to well in his chest, as well as regret. If only he had been more prepared for Gin's attack…he wouldn't have ever been in such a sad state to have to have his inner hollow come out and completely take over.

Ichigo can sense Inoue is close, and if he thought he could set Rukia down on her own and get Inoue to this spot quicker, he would…but Rukia needs him to hold her up, due to the wound that he unintentionally gave her when he was not in control of his body.

When Inoue runs up, her eyes widen in horror at what she sees. Never in a million years would she have thought she'd find Kuchiki-san with Kurosaki-kun's zanpakutou embedded deep in her chest. Rukia is only barely conscious at this point.

"Kuchiki-san!" Inoue says in horror as she kneels down on Rukia's other side.

"Should I pull it out?" Ichigo asks Inoue, with tears pouring down his face. Inoue bites her lip, and then she nods.

"Yes. Pull it out and then step away so that I can fix this." Inoue says to him, and Ichigo gets a shamed look on his face, and the sound of pulling his zanpakutou out of her body, grates on his ears as no other noise could. He can feel the pain he's causing her, as he's very connected with his blade.

"Rukia…I'm so sorry!" Ichigo says as he cries and pulls his zanpakutou completely from her body. Rukia's life force disappears the instant his zanpakutou is out, and Ichigo gets a horrified look on his face, as the tears start to pour out faster down his cheeks.

Inoue doesn't wait, she immediately encloses Rukia in her healing barrier and gives Ichigo a questioning look.

"Kurosaki-kun…what on earth happened here?" Inoue asks even as she watches Rukia begin to heal.

"I fucked up." Ichigo says before he stands up and turns his back on the healing process. "When she's healed…you tell her I'm sorry." Ichigo says, before he uses shunpo to disappear. There's no way he can tell Inoue about what actually happened. He also doesn't want Inoue around to hear what he has to say to Rukia, when she's okay.

Rukia opens her eyes and sees Inoue next to her, and Rukia smiles a little.

"Thank you…Inoue." Rukia says in a rough voice, and Inoue's tears fall down her face.

"You don't have to thank me…Kurosaki-kun just disappeared…he wanted me to tell you that he's sorry." Inoue tells her as she finishes up healing Rukia completely. Rukia looks around in shock and realizes he's gone, just like Inoue just said.

"He left?!" Rukia says, in amazement. Ichigo has never done that before…he's always stayed by her when she was hurt, until she was better.

"He was pretty upset." Inoue tells her in a soft voice. "Since it was his zanpakutou that caused your injury." Inoue explains, and Rukia's eyes widen and then she lets out a big sigh.

"I guess I have to go find him then." Rukia tells Inoue, before she pulls the girl in for a big hug.

"Kuchiki-san?" Inoue asks in surprise.

"Thanks for everything, Inoue." Rukia says, before she grabs up Sode No Shirayuki off the ground, and sheaths her zanpakutou before she uses shunpo to find Ichigo.

When she finds him, he's on the roof of his house, with tears pouring down his face. When he sees her, he looks relieved, and then ashamed.

"Rukia…" Ichigo says in an aching voice as she sits down next to him and looks at him.

"Aren't you supposed to be happy that I'm okay?" Rukia asks him in a tart voice.

"I am happy…but if it weren't for me you wouldn't have been hurt in the first place." Ichigo says with a scowl.

"I'm not mad at you." Rukia informs him, and Ichigo's gaze snaps to her face.

"What?" Ichigo asks with wide eyes.

"Thank you, for saving me from Gin. Death was preferable to being kidnapped by him anyways. I didn't mind that you had to stab through me to kill him." Rukia tells him in a whisper. Ichigo's eyes widen and then get angry.

"I mind! That wasn't me Rukia! I would never ever stab through you for anything! Your death is the last thing I would ever want!" Ichigo says in a panicked voice.

"If you hadn't stabbed through me, he would have killed you." Rukia tells Ichigo in a confident voice.

"I'd rather die than to run you through with Zangetsu. I'm surprised you healed so quickly." Ichigo tells her in a soft voice. Rukia grins at him.

"You didn't have any desire to kill me, which is probably why I survived a hit like that from Zangetsu." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo closes his eyes tightly.

"You died the instant I removed my blade from you." Ichigo informs her in a tight voice, causing Rukia to slap the back of his head.

"And you still left me?! You ass!" Rukia says loudly, and Ichigo holds his head and gives her a confused look.

"I was furious with myself! That's why I left!" Ichigo tells her in a grumpy voice.

"You should have stayed." Rukia says as she crosses her arms.

"I'm sorry Rukia…you're right." Ichigo says with a depressed look on his face.

"It's not all bad though, at least we have privacy." Rukia admits, and Ichigo gives her a puzzled look.

"Privacy for what?" Ichigo asks as he squirms a little.

"Did you forget that I kissed you?" Rukia asks him as she studies his face carefully. Ichigo blushes and he starts to breathe a little bit quicker.

"You forced my inner hollow to go back." Ichigo whispers as he looks down at her.

"And you kept Ichimaru Gin from kidnapping me." Rukia whispers in an intense voice.

"I'm sorry for what I did to you, Rukia." Ichigo tells her with pained eyes.

"Stop being sorry. You saved me. This isn't the first time you've done so, either. How can I do anything other than love you?" Rukia asks him softly, and Ichigo's eyes widen.

"Rukia." Ichigo says before he pulls her in for a close hug. "Thank you, Rukia." Ichigo says as his voice breaks. He can hardly believe that she's being so understanding about what happened tonight.

"Stop agonizing over it, Ichigo. It's really okay. You helped me and I'm not still hurt." Rukia tells him as she pulls away and rubs her nose against his in a loving gesture.

Ichigo grabs her by the hair and gives her a kiss, one that isn't tainted by any mask or any regrets. As he kisses her, he feels the pain in his heart subside, and the guilt in his mind start to fade away.

When they pull away, he looks at her with a bit of surprise and wonder on his face, and he knows he's glad that she is exactly who she is.

_Thanks Rukia. You always make the rain go away, and for that, I'll love you forever._


	94. As Requested: It Will, It Won't

_**A/N- For this chapter, Ichigo is now 18 and has spent years fighting with Rukia now. He's known a long time that he loves her, but they still haven't done anything about it. This is done by request, and I hope you all like it. The person wanted Rukia to tell Ichigo why things wouldn't work between them…Please enjoy!**_

_It Will, It Won't_

Ichigo tucks his arms behind his head. He has no doubts whatsoever in his mind that Rukia loves him deeply. Every time he lets himself get nostalgic and remember the past, he's flooded with memories, of her saving his life. Many of those instances, she had put her life on the line for him as well.

He's held off for a long time, sensing that she just wasn't ready for the discussion, but he's getting less and less able to ignore the attraction that has built up for so damned long now.

He remembers all of the times she said something meaningful when the situation got dire. She's stayed here, fighting with him this whole time. Ichigo is grateful for that too, because he feels a terrible emptiness whenever she has to go back to Soul Society, even for a day.

All of these things have been on his mind for months now. After carefully mulling it all over in his brain, he's decided that one of the two of them needs to do something, or else he'll lose his mind.

Ichigo's confidence is definitely at its highest after he spend ten minutes thinking about all that they've done for one another. He hasn't even been on one date in his teenage life, because she is the only girl for him.

Rukia enters his room wrapped in a towel and she quickly looks away from him when she sees his concentration completely on her. She rushes to the closet to grab a dress, she hurries out of his room, and Ichigo grins.

_She's so shy sometimes, and other times, she kicks me so that I can see completely up her skirt._

Ichigo sighs, as he imagines how things are finally going to change for he and Rukia. He can hardly wait, too. The glimpse of her in that towel was enough to remind him why it was time to be honest. If he wasn't, he'd end up running into her closet one of these nights and terrifying the hell out of her if he just started to kiss her.

Somehow, she had convinced his father to allow her to sleep in the closet, and Ichigo never did figure out how she managed that feat. It just made his frustration worse. Ichigo wonders if that's why his father agreed to it. His dad's been talking about romance for years now, so Ichigo wonders if this was his dad's way of giving him a subtle hint.

A long time ago, Ichigo used to think Rukia was unreachable. But then as they slowly started working together and developing a bond, he realized that things weren't the way he'd first imagined them. As time went on, he came to understand that he really loved her, very deeply. He also came to realize that she loved him in the same way.

It's taken a long time to finally get to the point where he's ready to knock down a wall that he's always kept up. He's been ready a long time now to let Rukia in, but he hasn't had the confidence to tell that to her.

_Today is going to be different!_

Ichigo waits patiently for Rukia to come back into his room. His father is busy in the clinic, and his sisters are both out. Ichigo already shoved Kon at the bottom of the dirty laundry hamper to keep him from interfering.

It's the perfect time to have this chat with Rukia. Ichigo stands up and walks over to pick up a photo that they took at the arcade together, and he smiles a bit at how they look together.

_I love how petite she is, I wonder if she even knows how cute she is?_

Ichigo sets the picture down, and sits back down on his bed. He's starting to get impatient, but Rukia enters the room, and gives him a quick look before she steps in. She closes the door behind him, and walks over to the window to look out.

"Rukia." Ichigo says, and Rukia glances at him.

"What?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo gives her a tiny smile, as he pats the spot on the bed next to him.

"Come sit here with me, I want to talk to you." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia raises an eyebrow, but she does as he asks.

"Sure." Rukia says, absentmindedly. She is trying to recall if Ichigo has ever asked her to sit on the bed next to him in the past, when he starts talking and makes her lose her train of thought.

"Rukia, I've been thinking about things for awhile, and I'd really like to take our relationship to the next level." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia's eyes widen.

"The next level?" Rukia echoes, as she stares at him in shock.

"My feelings have been incredibly strong for you, for a really long time now." Ichigo says in a firm voice.

"They have?" Rukia says, not even believing that they're having this discussion.

She had stopped expecting having this discussion close to a year ago, and she had decided that she would be happy with what she did have with him. She stuck by him, because she didn't want to be anywhere else.

"Rukia, I can't be the only one aware of what's happened here. You care about me, just as much as I care about you." Ichigo tells her as he looks her straight in the eyes.

Rukia was unprepared for this, she really hadn't had any idea, that this would be what was on Ichigo's mind today.

"Of course I care about you, idiot!" Rukia says, defensively, causing Ichigo to smile a bit wider.

"So then, you agree?" Ichigo asks, and Rukia looks totally stumped.

"Agree?" Rukia asks him.

"You know, that it's time to take our relationship to the next step," Ichigo says, wondering why she's not following along.

"Yes…no…wait!" Rukia says, as her brain is all a mess. Ichigo's eyes widen at that, and Rukia begins to shake her head no at him.

"Don't shake your head at me like that." Ichigo tells her in an annoyed voice. Rukia just keeps shaking it no, though.

"It would never work! Ni-sama would-" Rukia starts to slay but Ichigo gently covers her mouth, very solidly with his hand.

"I'll never let your brother get in the way of things. You don't have to worry about that." Ichigo assures her, before he slowly pulls his hand away from her mouth.

"He'd never allow it!" Rukia says stubbornly, and Ichigo glares at her.

"Didn't I just tell you he won't be a problem?" Ichigo asks her in an exasperated voice.

"You're delusional if you think that. I'll tell you right now, he'll forbid it, since you are not of noble blood." Rukia insists, and Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"You aren't either. And I won't let him tell us no." Ichigo says, reminding her of the facts.

"I'm much older than you!" Rukia stammers out, and Ichigo grins at her.

"I don't even want to think about how small you were when you were eighteen years old." Ichigo says with a scoff, causing Rukia to start smiling, unwillingly.

"I was pretty small," Rukia whispers, and Ichigo grins at her and waits for her to agree to changing their relationship.

She looks lost in thought though, so Ichigo sighs and pulls on a strand of her hair. Rukia's gaze meets his, and Ichigo gives her a really sexy look. Rukia feels her knees weaken, and Ichigo detects the moment of acceptance, and so he leans down to kiss her. He can't believe how incredibly soft her lips are, or how good it feels to be kissing her. He enjoys it thoroughly, until she suddenly pushes him away.

"Rukia what-" Ichigo starts to ask, but Rukia cuts him off.

"We can't! There is no way that it will work." Rukia says in a halting voice, and Ichigo rolls his eyes at her.

"It will work. We'll make it work." Ichigo tells her, but Rukia keeps her hands up.

"If we change things now, what if it doesn't work out? I don't want to lose you!" Rukia says, in a frantic voice, and Ichigo sighs loudly at her.

"I don't believe for one minute that it won't work out. My feelings are that strong." Ichigo tells her in a low voice, and he doesn't like how she keeps shaking her head no at him.

"There's no way!" Rukia says, and Ichigo reaches out with both of his hands to stop the movement of her head.

"Stop it Rukia. There's no point in denying our feelings. For once in your damned life, stop being so fucking stubborn!" Ichigo growls at her, and he can feel her head trying to move, but he keeps her from shaking her head at him again.

"How can you be so sure, anyways?" Rukia asks him as she finally stops trying to shake her head. Ichigo gives her a look before he releases her head.

"That's a silly question. I should be asking you why you have any doubts." Ichigo tells her, as he gives her a look.

"What?" Rukia asks, as she feels a bit like she's being bombarded by him, and she never expected to be.

"Why are you denying how you feel?" Ichigo asks her in a serious voice. Rukia's eyes widen.

"I can hardly believe that this is happening." Rukia mumbles even as she tries to finally take it all in and accept it. Ichigo is telling her that he wants her, and she's wanted him for so long now!

"Stop fighting your feelings." Ichigo says in a gruff voice as he grabs her and pulls her forward, into his arms. He holds her close.

"Ichigo…" Rukia says and trails off. She loves it in his arms, and it's nearly impossible to argue when it feels so nice.

"I love you Rukia. That's all the reason I need to do whatever I have to in order to be with you. You think I'd actually give you up?" Ichigo asks her in a husky voice.

"But-" Rukia tries to protest, but Ichigo cuts her off.

"But nothing! Tell me you don't love me Rukia, push me away from you. Because even if you do that, I'm not giving up! I know you love me too." Ichigo says as he squeezes her tighter.

"It won't work." Rukia's voice is very small against his chest and Ichigo gives her another exasperated sigh.

"It will." He says firmly, and Rukia slowly pulls away from him, and he lets her pull away so that he can stare her in the eyes.

"It' won't," Rukia says, with her face looking pained.

"Do you love me?" Ichigo asks her quietly, and Rukia can't look him in the eyes and lie.

"Of course, but-" Rukia starts to say, but once again he cuts her off.

"That's all I needed to know. We're going to be together Rukia. I don't care what arguments you have against it, you can't turn your back on how you really feel." Ichigo tells her, before he pulls her in for another kiss.

This time, Rukia enjoys it and doesn't pull away. When he finally ends the kiss, he hugs her tight.

"If you're sure…" Rukia says, giving him a doubtful look, and Ichigo gives her a huge and happy smile.

"I'm one hundred percent positive. Nobody will stand in our way." Ichigo assures her, and Rukia smiles at that. If anybody could make that statement true, it was him.

"Alright. Thank you, Ichigo." Rukia says softly. Ichigo can't stop smiling.

"Don't thank me, just don't ever say it won't work again." Ichigo tells her in a firm voice, and Rukia nods.

_This is the way it was meant to be. Thank goodness he's stubborn!_

_**A/N- I decided to try my hand at one more Ichigo & Rukia video, so the link will be in my profile as the first link you see when it's available on You Tube. Please check it out! It includes a little bit of Kaien at the beginning too **_


	95. As Requested: Fun Sized

**A/N- This is dedicated to a very loyal reviewer who PM me with a request, to do a story about Ichigo teasing Rukia about her size. I hope you enjoy it! **

_Fun Sized_

When Rukia wakes up in Karin and Yuzu's bedroom alone, she stretches and takes her sweet time making her way to Ichigo's room. He's been teasing her a lot lately, and she isn't sure why he's doing it, but it has been getting on her nerves.

Just the other day, as they had stood next to each other, he'd rested his elbow gently against her head and told her she made a good arm rest. She had clocked him in the nose for that comment.

For some reason, he smiled as he groaned in pain though, and Rukia has found herself wondering if she needs to start hitting him harder so that he can't smile after she just hit him. She sighs as she makes her way into Ichigo's room. She is already expecting some sort of insulting comment regarding her height since he's been doing it so frequently as of late.

She is not wrong either. The moment she walks in room, Ichigo glances up and grins at her.

"Hey short stuff, how did you sleep?" Ichigo asks, and watches with fascination as her face starts to turn red in anger.

"That is not my name." Rukia tells him icily, and the grin he's been wearing since she walked in, seems to get a bit wider. This pisses Rukia off to no end.

"Your name is cute." Rukia says, before she walks out of his room and slams the door behind her.

She can hear Ichigo's laughter following her, and that just angers her even more. Apparently he only gets pissed off if someone other than herself makes that kind of comment about his name.

She stomps down the stairs, and goes to sit in the family room, which is currently vacant. His sisters are in the kitchen, and Isshin is in there talking to them too. Rukia crosses her arms as she sits on the couch, and scowls.

_Why is he picking on me so much lately? This isn't how I want things to be. I don't want him treating me like a little sister or something._

Rukia can't help but to scowl at that thought. If he _ever_ tells her that he thinks of her as a little sister, she will kick his ass so hard. She'll kick it harder than his little sisters could ever hope to.

Rukia is so busy being annoyed, that she doesn't notice that Isshin has walked in the room and is looking at her contemplatively. He wonders if he should talk to her, but he figures he ought to stay out of it. He figures they'll work it out for themselves. He sidles around the corner when he hears his son approaching Rukia.

"Rukia." Ichigo says, and she gives him a good glare.

"What?" Rukia asks him.

"I just wanted you to know that it's okay to be vertically challenged." Ichigo says in a really serious voice.

"Why you!" Rukia screeches as she jumps to her feet, and Ichigo flies up the stairs, laughing the whole way.

"You'd better run, Ichigo! You say that to me again, and I'll kick your ass!" Rukia roars up the stairs, and she doesn't realize that Isshin is around the other corner, laughing his ass off.

He's muffled his laughter with his shirt sleeve, and he's slid down the wall and is sitting on the floor, just trying to get a hold of himself. Yuzu walks past her father, glaring, and then into the family room and over to Rukia who is still glaring irately up the stairs.

"Rukia-chan? Is something wrong?" Yuzu asks with big eyes, and Rukia immediately feels stupid. She immediately gives Yuzu her sweet fake smile.

"Oh no, I feel so foolish, I'm so sorry that I yelled so angrily at your brother!" Rukia lies her ass off to Yuzu who grins at her.

"It's okay, I was just worried about you." Yuzu says, before she walks away. Karin strolls around after her sister and gives Rukia a long look before she smiles. Rukia looks back at Karin, a little taken aback.

"Don't worry, I feel like kicking his ass once in awhile too," Karin admits, and Rukia smiles a bit at that.

"Thanks for understanding," Rukia whispers, and Karin shakes her head and walks away.

Rukia decides to stay far away from Ichigo for the rest of the day. She ends up leaving the house and going on a long walk around Karakura Town to get away from his constant teasing of her. He didn't used to call her all of these names, but lately it seems as though he hasn't stopped.

While she's busy staying away from him, he finally figures out that she's avoiding him, and that bothers him. After her being gone two hours, he decides to look for her. It only takes him twenty minutes to locate her, and when he does, he notices she's about to turn around and face him, so he stops an elderly lady who is right next to him.

"Have you seen Rukia? She's got dark hair, and she's about this tall." Ichigo says, as he lowers his hand to the height of his knee.

The woman gives him a strange look, and shakes her head no before she moves on. Ichigo turns around and finds Rukia glaring at him with a dark look in her eyes. Ichigo is pleased that she saw him do that.

"You're such a jerk!" Rukia snaps at him, and Ichigo smiles at her.

"Why did you disappear?" Ichigo asks with a raised eyebrow. Rukia doesn't answer him, she turns on her heels and stalks away. She cannot believe he just asked a total stranger if they'd seen her and then described her as being as tall as his kneecaps.

Ichigo grins as she walks away, and he shoves his hands in his pockets as he follows along. She notices after a minute, and she spins around to glare at him again.

"Why are you following me?" Rukia demands, and Ichigo looks surprised.

"Don't we usually stick around one another in case of a hollow?" Ichigo asks innocently, and Rukia sighs.

"Whatever." Rukia mutters. She ends up heading back towards his house. Apparently, there's no getting away from him. When they get to his house though, he cuts in front of her.

"I'll get the door, the knob might be kind of high for you to reach." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia's face turns red with anger again.

As he opens the door, she kicks him in his ass and sends him flying to his face laying halfway in and halfway out of his house.

"Ow," Ichigo mutters.

She kicks off her shoes and walks across his back before she steps inside. She quickly heads up to the girls room, and is glad neither one of them are in their room. She decides to lay down, and is actually successful in her endeavor to take a little nap.

Ichigo gets disappointed when she doesn't come out of Karin and Yuzu's room. He ends up knocking, and getting no answer, he opens the door. When he sees her sleeping, he has to walk in and go over to the bed to stand next to her. He grins as he looks at her for awhile, and then he turns to leave the room.

"Sweet dreams strawberry shortcake." Ichigo can't help but whisper with a smile as he heads to his room.

Isshin decides to take them all out to dinner, instead of making Yuzu cook. When everyone learns they're going for pizza, that puts everyone in a good mood. Rukia is also terribly happy to learn that they're going for pizza. She's even forgotten about her bad mood and her irritation with Ichigo.

She is given a harsh reminder when they're greeted by the hostess and she asks them how many.

"Four and a half." Ichigo promptly replies, as he points at Rukia. "She's a little too short to be considered a full person." Ichigo immediately states, and Isshin sputters a bit at that, while Karin and Yuzu get wide eyed. Rukia turns bright red, though whether it's in embarrassment or anger, Ichigo can't tell.

The hostess decides not to get involved, instead she grabs five menus and leads them to a table. Rukia ends up having to sit next to Ichigo, and he smirks at her the whole time. She kicks him several times out of the view of his family.

He keeps his insults to himself during dinner, and on the way home, luckily for him, because Rukia is ready to pound him sideways after what he said to the hostess.

Rukia stomps upstairs to grab a book, and then she heads back downstairs, and spends the evening reading, while his father and sisters watch the television. Ichigo had been tempted to join, but when he'd seen Rukia engrossed in a book, he'd decided against it.

Isshin is starting to feel a bit concerned, and he's beginning to think he should reverse his earlier decision and talk to Rukia. He figures he'll do that soon, though not in front of the girls.

Rukia stays far away from Ichigo for the rest of the evening, and she goes to bed without having to hear anything more out of Ichigo.

When she wakes up in the morning, she feels very refreshed, but she leaves quickly since the girls are both still sleeping. She takes a bath, does her hair, gets dressed, and when she's finished, everyone else in the house seems to have gotten up. Ichigo walks out of his bedroom as she's leaving the bathroom, he grins at her.

"Hey pipsqueak!" Ichigo says cheerfully, and Rukia doesn't even hesitate. She flies at him and kicks him in the face several times before she turns and stomps downstairs. Once again she sits on the couch and glowers with her arms crossed.

Isshin spots her, and since Karin is still upstairs, waiting for the shower, and Yuzu is busy in the kitchen, he figures now is a great time to talk to her. His decision is confirmed when he hears the shower. That means Ichigo won't come down yet either. He walks over to Rukia and sits on the couch next to her.

"Is something bothering you, Rukia-chan?" Isshin asks in a comforting voice. Rukia sighs and shakes her head no.

"I'm sorry if I've seemed upset-" Rukia starts to say, but Isshin cuts her off.

"Are you upset because Ichigo keeps teasing you?" Isshin says, effectively surprising Rukia. She looks at him, but doesn't answer right away.

"I wish he would stop. He only recently started to do it, and it drives me crazy." Rukia admits softly, and Isshin gives her a big smile, that reminds her an awful lot of the one Ichigo has been giving to her as he teases her.

"Ichigo is an idiot. You see, he doesn't know how to express himself properly, and so he's doing it like a child would." Isshin tells her with a confident grin. Rukia raises an eyebrow at that.

"Huh?" Rukia asks, completely stupefied. She doesn't get what he's trying to tell her.

"It is frighteningly common amongst boys and young men to tease and make fun of a girl that they really like." Isshin elaborates, causing Rukia's eyes to widen hugely.

"So why is he making me angry?" Rukia asks curiously. She really doesn't get it, and she wants a full explanation.

"He doesn't understand it like that. He's paying an awful lot of attention to you, and in a way he's flirting with you. All you need to do, is flirt back! You can do it, Rukia-chan!" Isshin tells her with a confident nod of his head. Rukia doesn't look like she believes him.

"I don't know…" Rukia trails off, and Isshin sighs.

"Trust me. I'm his father and I know him well. If I'm wrong, I'll buy you a rabbit." Isshin assures her, and Rukia's eyes turn all huge and longing.

"Really?" Rukia asks hopefully. That is definitely a consolation prize worth earning, if Ichigo's father happens to be wrong.

"So you think I should try flirting?" Rukia asks, and Isshin winks at her.

"Give it a try, it couldn't possibly hurt, especially since you have a rabbit to gain if I'm wrong! And it will stay in Ichigo's bedroom, not that it will matter, because I'm not wrong." Isshin tells her, and Rukia smiles.

She slowly nods her head, and decides to go on a short walk to think about how she'll handle Ichigo the next time she sees him. She ends up wandering into a candy shop, and she notices that there are giant sized candy bars, regular sized candy bars, and then she notices with delight that there are fun sized candy bars.

Rukia smiles hugely as everything comes together in her mind. Never in her life, has she heard of something small sounding so wonderful, as fun sized. She nearly skips back to the Kurosaki residence, and when she heads inside, Isshin is on the couch and she gives him a huge smile.

"Now will be the moment of truth!" Rukia informs him, and Isshin laughs.

"Where were you? Out picking a rabbit in case I was wrong?" Isshin asks her with a raised eyebrow, and Rukia shakes her head no.

"I just want on a walk and stopped in a store for a minute." Rukia says with a grin, before she heads upstairs.

Ichigo is surprised when she enters his room wearing a bright and sunny smile. She looks like she's really in a good mood.

"You're in a good mood for someone who's so short," Ichigo tells her, and he feels major shock when Rukia doesn't get angry, instead her smile seems to grow, and she just stares at him in the eyes for a moment before she responds.

"I'm not short, I'm fun sized!" Rukia retorts with a big smile as she puts her hand on her hips and stares him down. Ichigo's eyes widen as he looks at her, and he can't help but smile at that retort. After a moment, he starts to laugh. When he finally stops, he looks up at her, and he grins again.

"That's better than any of the names I gave you before." Ichigo admits, with a sparkle in his eyes.

"Why are you paying so much attention to me anyways?" Rukia asks him with a lifted eyebrow, and Ichigo is speechless for a moment.

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asks her after a minute.

"Could it be that you have a thing for fun sized girls?" Rukia asks him with a big smile as she advances closer. Ichigo turns bright red.

"Shut up!" Ichigo growls at her, and Rukia starts to laugh at him.

"I get it all now, Ichigo, though I should be depressed that I won't be getting a rabbit." Rukia says with a small sigh, as crosses her arms and smiles again.

"What?" Ichigo asks in confusion.

"If you didn't have a thing for a certain fun sized girl that lives in your house, I was going to be given a rabbit. Thing is, I'm happier about you having a thing for me than I am about the rabbit, so it's okay." Rukia tells him, before she spins around and leaves his room gracefully.

Ichigo can't stop blushing. He wishes he could have denied it…but he couldn't. He wishes she were still in the room, since she always makes him smile.

_I guess I do have a thing for a certain fun sized girl living in my house._

**A/N-The fun sized line was also the requester's idea! Thank you, to the requester!**


	96. As Requested: Overtaken 2

**A/N- I had a request to do this, with a confrontation between Ichigo & his hollow plus a lemon included, so please enjoy! As always, all requests that I write are dedicated to those who request them!**

_Overtaken 2_

Ichigo feels a bit of relief when Rukia leaves him alone on the roof to go and bathe.

Even though she's not mad at him, he's still pretty mad at himself. He can't believe his blade ever pierced through her skin. It's completely unacceptable. So much so, that Ichigo feels a need to have a discussion with the jackass responsible for hurting Rukia.

He climbs into his window, to enter the room, and he lays down on his bed and shuts his eyes.

He immediately enters his inner world as he'd hoped he would. Ichigo isn't surprised that his inner hollow isn't immediately visible, Zangetsu is standing on his sword with his arms crossed, looking as pissed off as Ichigo is feeling.

"Get out here now!" Ichigo roars to his inner hollow. His inner hollow jumps up from the side of a building.

"Yo King, how are ya?" His inner hollow asks, as though nothing is wrong.

"You bastard!" Ichigo shouts as he flies at the obnoxious ass. His inner hollow starts to look a tiny bit frightened as Ichigo comes at him and takes him around the neck, lifting him high into the air.

"Let go!" His inner hollow gasps at him, and Ichigo squeezes tighter.

"You stabbed Rukia! How could you do that? You are not allowed to ever hurt her!" Ichigo roars at his hollow. His hollow gags a little.

"Old man-" The hollow says, and Zangetsu shakes his head.

"I warned you not to do it. You have nobody but yourself to blame for this." Zangetsu says, with no sympathy. Ichigo slams the inner hollow's head into the building and jams his knee into his hollow's chest.

"Rukia, is off limits to you." Ichigo says in a hard voice to his hollow.

"You are so naive. If you die, she becomes mine, and I can do whatever I want with her." His inner hollow objects, causing Ichigo to go back to choking him.

"Even if I die, she is off limits to you. Do you understand me?" Ichigo asks in a low voice.

"It's your fault! You are the one who keeps teasing us with her all the time!" His inner hollow complains, and Ichigo looks confused.

"What the hell does that mean?" Ichigo hisses at his inner hollow.

"He desires her, and he knows she'll never go for him, only you." Zangetsu informs Ichigo, causing his inner hollow to sputter angrily at Zangetsu.

"You forgetting she kissed me?" His inner hollow demands with a smile hinting at his lips. "She was so sexy with blood running down her chest too," He adds.

"She was kissing me!" Ichigo roars at the infuriating hollow.

Zangetsu flinches and sighs from on top of his sword as he can tell Ichigo has lost his temper completely now. Of course Ichigo's right, she had only kissed him in that moment in order to bring Ichigo back in control, count on the hollow to take it as a sign of attraction from her to it. She's a Shinigami, and Zangetsu can't imagine what it must have taken for her to kiss Ichigo despite his actions and appearance at the time.

Ichigo quickly stands and picks up his inner hollow's body and sends it flying into the next building, before he jumps through the hole in the wall of the building to keep going on with the fight, but he's suddenly distracted by the contents in the room of the building that they landed in. Even his inner hollow seems distracted.

The room is decorated with damned rabbits, and there are portraits of Rukia, everywhere. In some she's smiling, in others she looks angry, and in others, she looks very sad. All of her emotions are clearly portrayed in the many pictures all over the room.

"What the hell?" Ichigo asks with a gaped open mouth as he looks around. Even his inner hollow seems to forget that he was just taking a beating as he looks around in shock.

"And I thought this place couldn't get anymore jacked up." His inner hollow mutters, and Ichigo unthinkingly nods his head in agreement as he looks around, his mouth gaped wide open.

Ichigo keeps looking around the room, where there are things that represent Rukia and who she is, not only that, but how important she obviously is to him. The most disturbing portrait is of Rukia in her Shinigami robes with a heart shaped frame around it.

There are pictures of them together everywhere as well too. Particularly of him saving her in Soul Society. There's a life sized portrait of her naked, with her private parts covered only by snow, which makes Ichigo blush very hard. His inner hollow scoffs.

"This room makes me feel incredibly weak. I never want to come in here again." His inner hollow actually looks sick, like he's gaining flesh tones instead of his bleach white skin.

"I can't keep kicking your ass in this room," Ichigo says, with a shake of his head. Being in this room puts him in a ridiculously good mood for some reason and so he grabs his inner hollow by the hair and tosses him onto the roof of the next building.

Ichigo figures he shouldn't enter any more buildings, since with his luck, he'd be in one that represents his mother next. Problem is, that after being in that room that represents who Rukia is to him, he's kind of lost his will to fight a little bit. His inner hollow is gasping from being in the room and he lets out a long shiver.

"Okay King, you got yourself a deal. I'll never touch her again, and you never make me enter that building again." The hollow says with a disturbed look on its face. Ichigo nods his head.

"Fine. You're lucky she's not dead. That doesn't mean I'm done with you though," Ichigo says, before he leaps back on his hollow. Ichigo just starts beating the shit out of him on top of the building, when suddenly he's yanked out of his inner world by force. When he opens his eyes, Rukia is leaning over him.

"Ichigo, what the hell?" Rukia asks him in a low voice. Ichigo's eyes widen. He notices she's wearing his tee-shirt and a pair of his boxer shorts. He smiles at that.

"Rukia! I was just beating the hell out of my inner hollow. Why did you stop me?" Ichigo asks as he rubs his head. Rukia's eyes soften up.

_He was beating up his inner hollow? How do I not just love him madly after hearing that?_

"Ichigo." Rukia says, and when he gives her his full attention, she leans in and kisses him, differently from earlier.

Ichigo responds enthusiastically to her advance. His hands start to move all around her back, and she smells really nice from her shower. He slips his hand underneath the tee-shirt so that he can rub her bare skin as they kiss.

Ichigo pulls her closer to him, and when they pull away, Ichigo immediately starts to kiss her neck and shoulders. Rukia sighs and smiles before she turns her head and starts to kiss him wherever her lips can reach. It's kind of difficult since he's working his way around her throat, and then his hands come around her side and he starts to caress her breasts.

Rukia blushes, and sighs again as he's kissing and touching her. She starts to run her hands around his shoulders and chest and she likes how she can feel all of his muscles, after all he's very strong. He has a nice body from all of his working out and constant fighting.

Ichigo stops kissing her long enough to pull off her shirt completely, and Rukia turns bright red and wishes the lights were off, but they're not. She grabs the cover up around her back and pulls it forward, but Ichigo's yanking off his own shirt and so she waits for him to finish before she falls back on top of him with the blanket covering them.

Ichigo decides to just let her be shy for now. There's no point in worrying about that anyways. They begin to make out again, and Rukia starts to really lose herself in all of the feelings that Ichigo is bringing about for her. His hands are moving around a lot, but they seem to frequently settle on her breasts, and it feels much more pleasant than she had imagined that it might, before she ever experienced being touched like this.

Ichigo is kissing her and slowly moving up and down her arms and shoulders. Rukia feels something pressing into her hip and so she reaches down to move it, and the moment she does, Ichigo lets out a loud, turned on moan.

Rukia is quite intrigued by his response, since it was how he's been making her feel with his lips moving across her skin. She reaches down and takes a hold of his arousal, and she moves it around in her hand, causing Ichigo to stop kissing her for a moment to let out another turned on moan.

"Rukia…" Ichigo mutters before he captures her lips in another kiss.

Rukia is quite pleased by his reaction, and so she starts to experiment with her hand movements on him. Within a minute, Ichigo reaches down to unbutton and unzip his pants to give her unrestricted access, since she's driving him completely wild.

Once Ichigo shoves his pants and boxers down far enough, he lays back again and pulls Rukia towards him. He kisses her lips and then he pulls her up so that he can kiss her breasts.

Rukia starts to breathe very heavily after a few minutes of that, especially since her nipples get hard from his touch, and she reaches down to grab him again.

She quickly learns what ways are the best ways to touch him, and how much pressure to apply. She is fascinated by this part of him, since it makes him react so strongly. Ichigo finally yanks her hand away and he starts to pull the boxers she's wearing down. He groans when his hands slide across her bare ass as he pulls at them from the back.

He finally gets her completely undressed and then he flips her over on her back so that he can finish removing his pants and boxers. He knocks the blanket completely away too. Rukia looks up at him a bit nervously, but Ichigo doesn't plan on hurrying it, she had gotten him way too turned on,just by touching him, and he wants to concentrate on her for a few minutes, to try to calm down a little bit. He also wants to return the favor.

Ichigo starts to kiss her down the center of her chest, in between her breasts, and he keeps moving down the center of her torso and he licks around her belly button, before he takes the plunge to lick her in between her legs. Rukia's legs clamp up around his head immediately after he starts and she lets out a very loud gasp.

"Ichigo!" Rukia gasps out next.

Ichigo had overheard that this was the best way to get a girl to come, but even so, he's surprised by the intensity of her reaction to him doing this. He also notices how it takes hardly no time at all to get her completely wet and…ready.

Ichigo moves back up over her stomach and kisses her breasts and then her neck again. He runs his hands through her soft and silky hair and feels like his body is on fire from being this close to her, without any clothes on at all.

"Rukia…" Ichigo mutters as he positions himself to make love to her. Rukia looks up at him with desire and love shining in her eyes.

Ichigo groans and kisses her neck some more as he finds the place he wants to be.

"I love you," Rukia whispers in an emotional voice, and Ichigo glides inside of her. It's easier than he expected, considering how tight she feels. It must be because of how much she came, from him licking her.

"I love you too…" Ichigo tells her in a tight voice, and he slowly begins to move and lets out a long shaky moan as he does so. Rukia gasps too, and he can hardly control himself. He starts to pick up the pace, and he runs a hand through her hair and rests it against her neck with her hair in between his hand and her neck. He balances his body with his other hand and the elbow of his left arm, where his left hand is in her hair.

Rukia lets out a feminine and turned on moan as he slides around, and Ichigo feels a bit ashamed since he knows he won't be able to last for very much longer. She feels too good, and he's too new at this to be able to force himself to hold off for longer.

"Oh my god, Ichigo!" Rukia says in a harsh whisper.

Ichigo can't stop, and he's surprised to hear Rukia getting more frantic too. He thinks it's a good thing that she's new at this too.

"Rukia!" Ichigo practically shouts that, but he can't help himself. Their bodies shudder in unison as they both feel identical waves of ecstasy flood their bodies.

Ichigo lets out a long quivering breath as he retreats from her and flops down on his side next to her. He crushes her to him in his arms and breathes deeply. He closes his eyes tight and he feels thankful beyond anything that he has her, and that she's here with him, loving him.

It is so embarrassing to know that in his inner world, there's a room that represents Rukia so perfectly. It's amazing, the extent in which he loves her. He really can't get over it. He shakes his head and grins happily.

_Leave it to Rukia, to impact me so much I have a building that's decorated with bunnies on the inside. _


	97. As Requested: Bankai Vs Bankai

**A/N-I had a request to do a story on Rukia's bankai, and having her and Ichigo getting into a friendly duel after her achieving it, with a revelation at the end of it. Enjoy! I also started a Black & White IchiRuki forum so please go post there!**

_Bankai Vs Bankai_

Rukia grins when she enters Ichigo's room after a long month of training with her captain, one on one.

Her captain had noticed immediately upon her return to Soul Society a month ago, that her reiatsu had been drastically increased, and he told her she should have enough reiatsu to be able to materialize her zanpakutou.

Rukia had actually managed to accomplish materialization within a week of being told that.

It seems that spending a lot of time with Ichigo, significantly raised her reiatsu, just like what happened with his human friends.

"We need to get you started on training so that you can fully utilize bankai." Sode No Shirayuki had told her upon being materialized. Rukia's eyes had widened in shock, but she had wordlessly nodded her head.

During her time training with Sode No Shirayuki, Rukia realized Sode No Shirayuki wants Rukia to have enough power to protect Ichigo, too.

Ukitake had been shocked as well, since Sode No Shirayuki resembled Rukia quite a bit, wearing a cloak of flowing snow, with long black hair that was nearly to her feet, and striking blue eyes. She had long pointy fingernails, and she wore a necklace of icicles.

Within a week of training with Sode No Shirayuki, materialized, Sode No Shirayuki revealed the name of Rukia's bankai, to which Rukia had been speechless.

"I thought it would take you much longer to tell me." Rukia whispered, and Sode No Shirayuki had given her a sad smile.

"It takes time to master your bankai, but you need to get started, or else you and he will just end up getting killed. I can't have that." Sode No Shirayuki had revealed, and Rukia had spent the rest of her time in Soul Society, training very hard, resting, or eating. She didn't spend any time socializing, because she understood that she had no time for slacking off.

Rukia had been amazed to learn, just what all her bankai was capable of, it really surprised her that she was even capable of such power. She had grinned as she had realized that she would even be quite a handful for the very powerful and amazing Kurosaki Ichigo. It had always bugged her a tiny bit that he had surpassed her own abilities in such a ridiculously quick amount of time.

She feels like she's on top of the world, when Ichigo enters his bedroom and nearly squawks when he sees her leaning up against the window with a soft smile on her face.

"Rukia! You're back!" Ichigo says as he closes the door. He wishes he could walk over and hug her, but if she pushes him away, he doesn't know how he'll be able to take that.

"It's been awhile, huh Ichigo?" Rukia asks him with a grin, and a sparkle in her eyes.

"Yeah." Ichigo whispers, not wanting to admit that his life has been plain drab without her around making everything wonderfully complicated.

"Have you been training a lot?" Rukia asks, causing Ichigo to give her a strange look.

"Not really, just the usual killing of several hollows a day." Ichigo replies, with a bit of a smirk.

"Well I've been training intensely, and I'd like to go to Urahara's shop to his training area and keep going." Rukia tells Ichigo, who's eyes widen.

"Now?" Ichigo asks her with a bit of surprise.

"Yes now. Do you have a hot date, or do you want to come with me?" Rukia asks him with a pointed stare. Ichigo finds himself smiling before he even realizes it.

"Of course I want to come with you." Ichigo says with a grin. Rukia winks at him.

"Great. We can train together." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo starts to shake his head no.

"That wouldn't even be fair." Ichigo tells her in a quiet voice, causing Rukia to slug him in the chin.

"Don't assume I'm so damned weak. In fact, I'll even challenge you to a friendly battle. You can even release Zangetsu if you want to." Rukia tells him, causing Ichigo to scoff.

"I wouldn't use bankai in training against you," Ichigo says, and then he stops before he pisses her off, since the rest of what he's thinking certainly would piss her off.

"That's interesting. I wouldn't hesitate to use bankai against you." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"Keep dreaming." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia just keeps smiling.

"Are you taking my challenge, or are you chickening out?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo rolls his eyes.

"Fine. I accept your challenge, but you're not allowed to cry if you lose." Ichigo warns her, and Rukia's eyes flash defiantly at him, as she smiles a bit wider.

"The same goes for you." Rukia says in an even voice, and Ichigo is impressed. She sure can talk a good game.

"I'm amazed you can say those things to me, yet I'm fairly certain you would never challenge Byakuya like this." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia gasps.

"Of course I would never challenge Ni-sama." Rukia says with a shake of her head. "I would never hit him either." Rukia says in a pointed voice, and Ichigo glares at her for that remark.

"Now I feel special," Ichigo mutters angrily under his breath, but Rukia either didn't hear him, or she pretended not to. He can't tell which it is. He doesn't expect her to just hop out the window, and he ends up having to chase after her since she doesn't wait for him, she just starts heading to Urahara's place.

_I can't wait to see the look on his face when I show him my bankai._

Ichigo can sense that something is different about Rukia, now that she's back. He tries to figure it out, but he can't pinpoint what about her has changed. Ichigo doesn't really relish the idea of a mock battle with her, after all, of all of the people he has the resolve to be able to cut, she is simply not one of those people.

_She looks downright eager to cut me though._

Ichigo feels a bit sulky. He had missed her while she was gone, not that he'd come out and say so, and she acts like they haven't spent any time apart, except for to say it's been awhile.

When they arrive at Urahara's place, he welcomes them in with a smile, and then his gaze shoots at Rukia. He knows instantly that something has changed about her, and that her reiatsu which had been large before she left has grown even more in her absence away from Karakura Town.

"Would it be okay for us to train in your underground room?" Rukia asks Urahara, who grins at her.

"Of course, go right on ahead…and have fun!" Urahara says in a singsong voice.

"Thanks, Urahara-san." Ichigo says, as he and Rukia head to the area that Urahara had prepared ages ago, for Shinigami training exercises.

Rukia and Ichigo make their way down to the training area, and get into Shinigami form.

They get into their fighting stances, and Rukia gives Ichigo a superior look with a small smile as she whips Sode No Shirayuki from her sheath and the chase begins.

Ichigo realizes her first dance is quite useful whenever he's about to catch her with Shunpo, since she freezes the air and he has no choice but to jump away or get frozen. Ichigo does not notice how she released her zanpakutou, without calling out its name.

As they keep going, Ichigo starts to get frustrated, just as Rukia had expected him to do. It's driving him crazy that he hasn't already won this mock battle. Just as Ichigo is about to catch her, she brings up another white moon, and Ichigo's arm gets stuck in it. Rukia immediately turns and flies at him with Sode No Shirayuki, and Ichigo's eyes widen as he realizes he's nearly caught.

"Damn it!" Ichigo shouts at the top of his lungs.

Ichigo blasts the ice apart with Zangetsu and glares at Rukia as he blocks her attack. She's a cunning and difficult opponent. She's not nearly as easy to defeat as he had imagined she might be.

"Don't get so frustrated…I told you that you could use your bankai." Rukia says in a teasing voice, and Ichigo gives her an even bigger glare, since it's like she refuses to take him seriously. Now that he's lost his temper, he forgets all about chivalry and fair fighting.

"Fine. You want it? You got it. Bankai!" Ichigo shouts. Rukia doesn't hear him call out the rest, but she knows that he did when he emerges from the mist of reiatsu with his sexy black and red cloak along with his thin black zanpakutou. Rukia doesn't wait any more.

"Bankai! Full Moon Ice Explosion, Sode No Shirayuki." Rukia calls out, causing Ichigo's mouth to drop completely to the floor.

"Rukia…you have bankai?" Ichigo asks in shock, as the reiatsu is flying all around her. He can hardly believe it when she finally reappears, she's wearing a cloak of flowing snow, with a necklace of icicles around her neck.

Her zanpakutou has changed too, even though it's still completely white, it no longer has the shape of a blade, it now looks like a swirl of ice and snow, protruding from her hand, in fact it resembles the shape of the sleeves on their Shinigami robes. He watches as she points the swirl at the ground, and before Ichigo can even realize what's happened, his feet are frozen completely to the ground, and the entire underground training area is covered in ice.

Rukia aims the swirl at him and he's instantly surrounded by a thick ice ball, though there is plenty of room around him, there is a colossal amount of ice between him and freedom, from all angles. Ice blades start flying at him from the inside, and Ichigo screams in terror as one flies right past his face, nearly killing him.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" Ichigo calls out frantically, as he starts to try and break apart the ice ball that he's stuck inside of. With every piece he breaks, the ice reforms and flies at him again. Ichigo cringes as one ice blade very nearly misses his manhood.

_What is she trying to do to me?_

Ichigo realizes he can't get out of her ice ball, no matter how hard he attempts to, even though he's able to stop her ice blades from killing him on the inside. It's starting to get cold and hard to move inside of the ball, not only that, it's getting harder to breathe.

There's only one way to get out of this…and Ichigo isn't at all proud that he has to do it.

He materializes the mask and lets out a powerful enough Getsuga Tenshou to blow apart her massive ice ball and then he disappears from her sight the moment he breaks free.

Rukia gasps when he ends up behind her with the blade of his zanpakutou resting carefully across her neck. He dissipates the mask behind her back.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says, in shock, and Ichigo is still breathing hard, from what he feels was his near death, inside that fucking deadly ice ball.

"What the fuck Rukia? Were you trying to kill me?" Ichigo snaps at her as he yanks his blade away and starts to stomp away from her. Rukia's mouth drops open at that comment.

He is quite livid that she brought him to the point of having to use the mask against her. He had no idea that she could cultivate that kind of power…the kind that made his amazing shunpo, irrelevant.

He looks around at how everything is frozen with ice, and he realizes she could have captured him, no matter where he would have gone. Not only that, but her bankai is absolutely amazing…just like her.

"Not one of my blades even touched you in there," Rukia says confidently, and Ichigo gives her an angry glare.

"They came close enough!" Ichigo roars at her, and he realizes she's trying not to smile at him.

"Are you surprised Ichigo? That I have bankai?" Rukia asks him, not even seeming worried about his anger, or his near death inside her deadly ball of ice. Ichigo shakes his head yes, and he feels a smile breaking on his face.

"I'm beyond surprised. I had no idea that you were even working on it," Ichigo admits softly, and Rukia smiles.

"I'm still training to master it, but I'm very happy with how it's all turned out." Rukia tells him with a wide smile. "It was much more fun to show you than to just tell you." Rukia says with sparkling eyes, and Ichigo loses all of his anger completely.

"I was dumbfounded." Ichigo admits with a whisper. He looks at her in her white cloak of flowing snow and the icicles around her neck. She looks absolutely, breathtakingly beautiful.

"You're the first person to see it, outside of Captain Ukitake." Rukia tells Ichigo with a blushing grin.

"You haven't shown it to anybody? Even Byakuya?" Ichigo asks with a whisper. Rukia shakes her head no.

"I only obtained it recently, and I have yet to master it. I'd prefer to tell him after I have it mastered." Rukia explains.

"Doesn't Captain Ukitake have an obligation to report it?" Ichigo asks her worriedly, and Rukia nods her head yes at him.

"He agreed to break the rules in this instance. Since he knows why-" Rukia stops mid sentence. She hadn't meant to reveal so much, sometimes it's just so easy to talk to Ichigo that she forgets she shouldn't just say whatever comes to her mind.

"He knows why what?" Ichigo asks, suddenly curious. It's even more intriguing when she blushes.

"Nothing." Rukia mutters as she dissipates her bankai, and seals her zanpakutou completely.

"I won the match, now you have to tell me," Ichigo reasons, and Rukia blushes again.

"It's private." Rukia mutters, and Ichigo gets a surprised and hurt expression on his face at being told that.

"Why is Ukitake-san allowed to know, and not me?" Ichigo asks in a confused voice, and he doesn't miss how her face turns an even brighter shade of red than it had previously been. She lets out a loud defeated sigh.

"Fine, I'll tell you, but you better not run off crying when I do!" Rukia threatens him, and Ichigo nods as he dissipates his bankai and puts Zangetsu on his back.

"Alright, shoot." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia looks at the ground as she gives her explanation.

"Ukitake-san knows how important it is to me to be able to still protect you." Rukia says in a low voice, refusing to meet his eyes. Ichigo's eyes soften right up. He forgets all about how close she came to killing him, and removing his manhood with her bankai.

"You never change…always trying to protect me." Ichigo tells her in an amused voice, and Rukia slowly looks up to meet his eyes. Her big blue eyes are very large when she responds to him.

"I want to protect you, because I love you." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo is shocked beyond all belief.

He never expected her to show him her newly acquired bankai, let alone confessing her true feelings to him. It's not as though he didn't know, he's always known, how much he loves her, and that she returns his feelings.

"That's my line," Ichigo tells her in a soft voice as they stare in each other's eyes. Rukia's lips curve into a smile.

"Is it now?" Rukia asks him, and Ichigo finally gives into the temptation.

He snatches her up in his arms and lifts her up so that he can kiss her on the mouth without having to bend halfway over at the waist. He kisses her and holds her tight in his arms to let her know that she's not the only one of them, who feels love.

When he pulls away, Rukia is stunned by the love she sees clearly in his eyes. She also realizes that the love has always been there, and she's always failed to notice how brightly it shines in his eyes.

"I'll be loving you and protecting you for as long as I live." Ichigo whispers as he stares into her eyes.

"Right back at you!" Rukia says with a laugh and then she throws her arms around him and hugs him close. She lays her head against his chest and truly enjoys the feelings of her arms around him, and his arms around her.

Neither one of them say what they're thinking, so they don't realize that they are having the exact same thoughts.

_I'll keep getting stronger so that nothing bad ever happens to you._


	98. As Requested: Ichigo's Kidou

**A/N- I had a request to do a story about a binding spell that goes all wrong when Ichigo attempts it while working with Rukia. Please Enjoy!**

_Ichigo's Kidou_

"I _get_ that I have to imagine it! Jeez Rukia, just give me a second!" Ichigo snaps irritably, as he's losing his patience. Sometimes he feels so stupid, and this is one of those times.

She's so talented with kidou, and though his attempts have been successful, he either lets out too much reiatsu and makes the spells too powerful, or he screws it up…somehow.

He's managed to find new ways to screw up kidou that Rukia has never even heard of before. She's heard of Shinigami who catch the brunt of their spells when they don't control it right, in fact, Renji was always good for that. She's heard of Shinigami who blew up observers on error, and other types of similar errors…but Ichigo has taken screwing up, to a whole new level.

She hasn't even let him attempt any destructive spells for the simple fear that he'll level out Karakura Town.

They've been working on simple binding spells. They had started out with the very first one she ever used on him. They went to a park where troublemakers were known to hang out, to have Ichigo practice using that binding art. He ended up paralyzing every single person at the park with the exception of himself and Rukia. Several birds flying around had pitched to the ground, instantly paralyzed too.

Not only that, the phenomenon had ended up on the news since the people remained paralyzed for close to a week.

Now, there are scientists at the park and wild speculations about what caused nearly every single person at the park to become suddenly and inexplicably unable to move their bodies.

What's worse, they all looked invisibly hogtied. Rukia had sighed, knowing it would be a very long, hard, and possibly dangerous road ahead if he insisted on learning kidou…which he did.

They had argued all evening long. Rukia had kept growling that he was only supposed to use the binding art on one person at a time, and Ichigo had kept responding that he hadn't done it on purpose. They had taken a complete day break from any kidou exercises, since Rukia got quite aggravated when she saw the story on the news.

They hadn't told Isshin what happened, but when he'd seen the story, he had laughed his ass off so hard, as if he knew exactly what had happened without needing to be told.

That had been the first of many aggravating mishaps when trying to teach Ichigo kidou. He has no control, he just performs the spells and nearly everything under his radar is affected.

"I think you should just give this up. It's not for you." Rukia mutters nervously, as Ichigo appears to be concentrating.

"Quit talking like that." Ichigo grumbles, as he loses concentration and gives up on the spell that she had been trying to teach him.

It was simple enough, it was binding art four, crawling rope. It was very useful against enemies that become weak from light.

On Ichigo's first attempt with that, she simply wanted him to bind a branch in a tree. That way, nobody would get hurt, and nothing would end up on the news.

Instead of binding the branch though, he covered the whole damned tree in rope. Rukia had let out a big sigh. Controlling reiatsu isn't his strong point, and he puts way too much power into all of his spells. They had gone home and then he was attempting to bind the branch of his neighbor's tree from his bedroom window, as he sits on the bed, which is where they are now.

"I'm sorry, Ichigo…but you scare me, you know that? It's great that you can perform such powerful spells, but you need to be able to perform them at a lesser level, too. What happens, if you end up using a binding art accidentally on an ally or something, all because you have no control over your spells? You're dangerous when you're like that." Rukia says with a sigh. Ichigo scowls.

"I know. Isn't that why we haven't even touched the destructive spells yet?" He asks her with a salty tone.

"If you truly want the people in this town to live, I suggest you don't attempt any destructive spells." Rukia says, in a flat voice from next to him, as it seems to be the safest place to be, when he attempts kidou. As pissed off as Ichigo is, for some reason, he finds her comment quite amusing.

She is incredibly cute, and he always likes being close to her. He uses the kidou training sessions as an excuse to be even closer to her, but she has seemed so aggravated with him, that it hasn't turned out the way he hoped it would. Instead, they're snapping at each other a lot and not really getting along.

Ichigo is staring at her, and his hand begins to light up. Rukia glances at him, and her eyes widen in horror as he has a distant look on his face, and she can't dive away from him in time.

"Way of binding, number four. Crawling Rope!" Ichigo calls out, even though he's definitely not concentrated on what he's doing. Rukia's eyes widen completely as his spell unfolds.

Within seconds, she and Ichigo are bound together on the bed, with his crawling rope holding them together in the bed since it is twined around them and the bed. If any normal human walked in his bedroom right now, it would look to them like the pair just pulled away at their faces only, from just making out, with her on top of him.

"Ichigo!" Rukia squeals, even as a rush of excitement floods up her body. She can feel her face heating up severely.

Ichigo's eyes are wide, and he's just as red as she is. There is no rope in between them, only all around them...and the bed.

"Uh…" Ichigo says in a breathless whisper.

"Undo it!" Rukia squeals, even as she finds herself enjoying the feel of his body, so close to her own.

"How?" Ichigo whispers, and Rukia lets out a long breath, and Ichigo closes his eyes. He can feel her breath against his lips…any closer and they'd be kissing.

No sooner does he have that brief thought when the rope pushes their heads in tighter. His lips are smashed up against Rukia's now. He knows it's his fault.

Her eyes widen in shock as she receives her first kiss from Ichigo due to his stupid binding spell, which he apparently has no clue how to undo, or control. She hadn't really been concerned about the length of his binding spells except for when it had been the park full of people…and now.

_I can't spend a week like this with Ichigo! There is no way…_

Ichigo shuts his eyes tight. He can't believe that his spell just got him a kiss with Rukia. Her lips…her breasts…her middle…her entire front side is pressed against his front side, and with her face at his face, everything else just sort of ends up meeting quite nicely too. Her legs are tucked in between his, and it feels really good.

He can feel her lips against his own, and Ichigo wants to hold her. He's surprised when the rope moves easily for him to be able to accomplish that fact. Rukia is surprised too…that he seems to be able to move easily within the bindings, and that he's chosen to put his arms around her while their lips are pressed so tightly against one another.

They both love it more than they want to admit. Rukia is still wondering about the length of time she'll be forced to lay on his front side, and how long it will take before his family finds them like this. She decides to forget all of that though and just concentrate on how nice it is to be in Ichigo's arms like this. She realizes how much he likes it too, when the evidence presses against her pelvis.

He's held her before, when he saved her at Soukyoku…and she's ridden on his back before…but this feels way nicer. Rukia squeaks in surprise when Ichigo begins to move his lips against hers, and the moment she squeaks, he takes the opportunity to move his tongue into her mouth.

He easily slides one of his hands up to her hair and he kisses her passionately. Rukia begins to wonder if this is some sort of phenomenal dream, since she would have never imagined that Ichigo would do this, but she quickly decides that it doesn't matter if it is a dream, because she wants to enjoy this moment.

Ichigo doesn't know where he got the nerve…but their lips were already pressed together, so why not make it a real kiss, and not one that they'll both be mad at later?

They have the longest first kiss of any couple in history, since they end up pressed against each other for several hours before Yuzu walks in.

"Ah!" Yuzu screams, causing both Rukia and Ichigo to turn bright red again.

She slams the door, and they hear her yell from the top of the stairs to the rest of the family that Rukia and Ichigo aren't feeling well and won't be joining them for dinner.

Ichigo feels relief at that. Apparently his little sister has no desire to be the one to announce to the family that he and Rukia are most definitely more than friends.

Ichigo and Rukia both start to feel like they'd like to be able to move though, after spending several hours pressed against one another. Even though it has its benefits, it's also kind of uncomfortable. She can't even really talk to him, because of the way their lips are pressed so tightly against one another. If they aren't French kissing, then they're still smooching.

They end up falling asleep like that, and during the night, as Ichigo sleeps, he somehow manages to undo the bindings. That doesn't stop them from cuddling as they sleep, though.

They both get a very decent night of sleep…until Isshin kicks in the door and flies at the bed. For once, Ichigo is caught completely off guard, and his father ends up in bed with the both of them. His father's eyes widen when he immediately realizes that he landed on both of them.

"Rukia-chan?!" Isshin says, with wide eyes. Rukia blushes, and she's glad that they're at least dressed. Ichigo isn't in much better condition, but he shoves his father off of them, and into a heap on the floor. Rukia's eyes widen as she consciously realizes that the rope binding is gone, and she leaps out of the bed, over Isshin, and onto the floor.

"I need a bath…" Rukia mumbles, with a completely red face, and Isshin just stares at Ichigo with a stupid grin on his face before he gives him two thumbs up.

"Nicely done, _now_ I have nothing left to teach you." Isshin says with an appreciative nod of his head. Ichigo scowls before he shouts and kicks at his father.

"You say that every fucking day! Get the hell out of my room! I feel like a broken record! Stop barging in here!" Ichigo's voice raises to a raging roar, but Isshin just keeps giving him a goofy grin as he hops out of Ichigo's kicking range.

"I was beginning to worry, quite honestly. I'm glad you and Rukia-chan finally slept together!" Isshin says as he clasps his hands together. "I always knew she would be my third honorary daughter!" Isshin says with a loud laugh, causing Rukia to turn bright red from the bathroom where she clearly hears him.

Ichigo's face is red as he stares in horror at his father while he talks at much too loud a volume. Isshin laughs again, before he leaves the room, and Ichigo flops back on the bed, and stays red.

_Kidou is useful after all…since it got Rukia into bed with me. Maybe I'll use it again tonight…_


	99. As Requested: Everything I Want

**A/N- This is a continuation to the lemonade series, it is being done by request, and is dedicated to the one who requested it. If you don't remember, go back to chapter 54 and 55 to refresh your memory. Please enjoy!**

_Everything I Want_

Ichigo hasn't said anything to Rukia yet, but he has definitely noticed how she has begun to distance herself from Inoue. It started very recently, that Rukia just seemed to stop initiating discussions with Inoue, and also took to treating his minor wounds with her own kidou, rather than to call Inoue to come heal it.

Ichigo doesn't really mind that Rukia has taken to healing him, but the fact remains that Inoue heals at a much faster rate than Rukia, so it's noticeable. He isn't sure if he should bring it up, or what her reasons are for suddenly ceasing her friendly interaction with Inoue.

They're on their way home now after fighting several strong hollows. Earlier in the evening, Rukia had been healing a cut on his leg, and Inoue had come running towards them since she had felt the fight and knew he needed healed. She had dropped down next to him, and Rukia shook her head no at Inoue.

"I'll take care of this one, Inoue." Rukia had said in a low voice as she concentrated on his wound.

Inoue had looked at Ichigo, and he had just nodded his head in agreement, since he was okay with Rukia taking care of him. It wasn't a very serious injury anyways, but then he had seen the hurt look on Inoue's face.

"If you're sure…" Inoue had said, before she slowly stood up. Rukia had just given her a curt nod, and Ichigo took pity on Inoue's sad expression.

"It's not that bad, and Rukia was doing this for me all of the time before you came with me to Soul Society to save her," Ichigo had assured Inoue with a friendly grin.

"Okay, I'll see you later," Inoue had said quietly. Rukia hadn't bothered to answer, but Ichigo had waved at her.

"Thanks for checking on us, Inoue." Ichigo had said as he waved. Inoue had smiled genuinely.

"You don't have to thank me, Kurosaki-kun," Inoue had said before she had walked towards her home. Ichigo had looked down to see that Rukia was nearly finished with healing him.

"Your healing reiatsu always felt nice," Ichigo told Rukia, with a pleased smile. Rukia grinned back at him.

"You've always thought that?" Rukia asked him with a raised eyebrow, and Ichigo had nodded his head at her.

"I think everything about you feels nice," Ichigo had said with a glint in his eyes as she finished completely healing him. Rukia smiled and leaned over to kiss him.

"I'm glad you feel that way. It wouldn't do, if you felt any other way." Rukia had told him with a wink.

They had stood up and held hands for the walk home. They walked quietly, for part of the way, but then Ichigo was rethinking the evening, and now he decides to see if she finally feels like talking about what has been bothering her.

"Rukia?" Ichigo asks, and Rukia squeezes his hand a little bit, causing Ichigo to grin.

"What?" Rukia asks him in a light voice.

"Has something been bothering you lately?" Ichigo asks as he gives her a sideways glance.

"What do you mean?" Rukia asks, genuinely confused since she hasn't realized that he's noticed her distancing herself from Inoue.

"More specifically, has Inoue done something to bother you?" Ichigo asks her softly, and Rukia frowns a little bit.

"Not purposely…but I would prefer not to talk about it." Rukia says, quietly, and that makes Ichigo even more curious about the situation.

"I think she's hurt that you've been…distant with her lately." Ichigo says, carefully, in an attempt to change her mind. Rukia lets out a long sigh.

"Look, I really didn't want to talk about it, but maybe you have a right to know." Rukia says in a tight voice. Ichigo stops walking, and he stops her too. He looks down at her with serious eyes.

"What?" Ichigo asks, since he's completely clueless about the situation.

"Inoue has feelings for you…more than those that you have for your friends." Rukia tells him as she stares up at him. Ichigo blinks twice in disbelief and then he starts to shake his head no.

"You're wrong about this. I've never gotten that feeling from her at all." Ichigo tells Rukia in a sure voice.

"You are the one who is wrong. She was sleep talking when I went to modify her memory, and she definitely has feelings for you." Rukia tells him in a firm voice.

"Rukia, you can't take sleep talking seriously, you know that, right? I've had some pretty fucked up dreams in my life, and if I were sleep talking, I wouldn't want anyone to take what I had to say very seriously." Ichigo tells her in a confident voice.

"How I wish you were right. The thing is, that after the fact, I started to realize that I never paid enough attention to the truth. She definitely has feelings for you." Rukia tells him with a regretful voice.

"Is this why you haven't wanted to tell our friends about us getting together?" Ichigo asks her with a raised eyebrow.

At first they had just wanted to enjoy their relationship without a million questions and so they hadn't mentioned that they had started dating. Then, after Kon had paid a ton of attention to Inoue in class, she suddenly seemed totally okay with keeping their relationship between themselves and his family. His father found out about them the day after they broke into the school, and he had been amazingly supportive of their relationship.

"Yeah." Rukia answers softly. "I don't like that she has feelings for you, but I don't really want to watch her heart break completely in two." Rukia mutters softly.

"Can't you just tell her that we're together, and still be friends with her?" Ichigo asks Rukia with a lift of his eyebrow.

"It would be very difficult. What I heard her say bothered me more than you even know, since it's something I can't honestly say." Rukia tells him with a big sigh. Ichigo's eyes widen a bit at that.

"What did you hear her say?" Ichigo asks. He asks not because he's curious about what Inoue had to say, but because he wants to know what Rukia can't say.

"She said, and I quote, _Kurosaki-kun, you can do anything you want to me. I won't say no. As long as we're together, I'll be happy_" Rukia says extremely quietly.

Ichigo's eyes widen a bit. Then he thinks of all of the things that Rukia has let him do to her, and how she fulfilled his fantasy to make love in the faculty lounge. How she lets him make love to her, and touch her, and how she has yet to tell him no in bed. He gives Rukia a very strange look.

"What kinds of perverted things do you come up with in your head, that make you so sure I can't do anything I want to you? I'm happy with what we have, and I don't secretly long for anything that you don't give me. Even if you can't say those words yourself, they're already true." Ichigo tells Rukia, and her eyes widen in shock.

"Really?" Rukia asks in surprise. Ichigo gives her a frown for asking him that question.

"You take good care of me, Rukia. In every sense the meaning, you take perfect care of me. You've risked your life for me countless times, you've broken the rules of Soul Society for me a few times, and I've never felt unsatisfied after making love to you…not only that, you kick my ass in gear when I need it, and you always know how to cheer me up when I need it. I have everything I want, with you." Ichigo says to Rukia and she gives him a big happy smile.

"Damn, Ichigo…I love you so much!" Rukia says before she jumps into his arms, and Ichigo holds her very close.

"I love you too. You're the only one I want, and you're everything I want." Ichigo tells her softly in her ear, and Rukia pulls her face back away from his shoulder to plant a big kiss on his lips.

Rukia feels the dark cloud that hung over her heart simply vanish away, as she smiles for the rest of the walk home.

_I feel the same way about you, Ichigo. You're everything I want._


	100. As Requested: Together

**A/N- I will be opening up a new series with the exact same title as this one, but with a 2 at the end after this chapter. That doesn't mean I won't add to this one, I think I am able to, but only the requested chapters that still pertain to this past series may end up here, for as long as I can add them. **

**I have received mostly positive reviews, and I appreciate all of the kind and positive things that you all had to say, it is what propelled me and inspired me to write more. For everyone who has reviewed, I want to say thank you. **

**I want to thank those of you who have watched my You Tube slideshows of Ichigo and Rukia that I posted the links of in my profile here, and also those of you who either voted in my poll or came to post in my new forum. (Black & White IchiRuki) I'm so happy to have fellow IchiRuki fans to discuss Bleach with. If you haven't come and posted, please come do so, and if you haven't checked out my slideshows on You Tube, please check those out too. **

**Keep your eyes peeled for BlacknwhiteIchiRuki2!**

**This chapter was requested by two reviewers, it is a sequel to chapter 94. Remember that Ichigo is eighteen for this 2 shot set! Please Enjoy!**

**Theresa Crane**

_Together_

"I don't believe we're here to tell ni-sama that we're beginning a relationship," Rukia says with a completely white face as they walk through Soul Society.

"We might as well get him used to the idea as early as possible. He will get used to the idea of it, though." Ichigo tells Rukia with a grin. He doesn't tell her the rest of what he's thinking though.

_Even if it's at the point of my blade._

"I wish I could be as confident as you are." Rukia tells Ichigo quietly. She wishes they could hold hands, but she doesn't want her brother to know what's going on before they have a chance to express it verbally for themselves.

"You always worry too much, but you're cute enough that you get away with it, without pissing me off." Ichigo tells her with a sideways grin. Rukia blushes at that.

"Cute?" Rukia asks him with a smile.

"Cute, beautiful, pretty, sexy, dynamite…you're all of them." Ichigo tells her, still grinning.

"You're obstinate, but sweet." Rukia tells him, still blushing heavily. Ichigo grins at that. She's always careful not to compliment him too much, so that he doesn't get too big a head.

"If you don't pick up the pace a bit, I'm going to pick you up and shunpo to wherever Byakuya is at." Ichigo tells her, since it's obvious that she's dragging her feet. Rukia flushes a bit at that, she'd hoped he wouldn't notice her walking more slowly than usual.

"I'm glad one of us is confident about this." Rukia grumbles at him as she picks up her pace, causing Ichigo to grin.

He knew there was no way she wanted to arrive to see her brother with him holding her in his arms, so his threat worked quite well, since they're now moving a much more quicker speed.

"I told you I'd take care of it, so you need to stop your worrying. Nothing is going to stop us from being together. I won't let anybody come in between us." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia looks up at him with admiration in her eyes.

This is not the same way the Ichigo of two years ago would have handled things, if they'd gotten together back then, she's sure of it. In the past two years, he's become the kind of man she always knew he would become…except better.

His face has a very determined, strong, and confident look to it, and he doesn't look the least bit worried. His lips are curved into a slight smile, as though he's looking forward to talking with her brother. When he's like this, it always makes her feel even stronger. His strength always flows into her when she needs it the most.

_You're amazing, Ichigo. That you're willing to do whatever you have to do in order for us to be together, it means more to me than you even know._

"Ichigo…we have to turn here." Rukia says, and Ichigo looks around with a bit of confusion, which doesn't suit him as much as his confident look does. He gives her a sheepish grin.

"I guess I still don't really know my way around here." Ichigo admits with a bit of a grin, as he goes in the direction she indicates.

"We're almost there." Rukia says, and Ichigo notices that she's not lying. He recalls running around this area when he was running away from Kenpachi, after he had saved Rukia. He hopes they don't run into him today.

"You sent the message for him to expect us, right? I don't want him to act like he won't see us because it's not in his schedule." Ichigo tells Rukia, as that thought suddenly pops in his head.

"I did send the message, but even if I hadn't, Byakuya ni-sama would still see me if I said I needed to speak to him." Rukia informs Ichigo, who rolls his eyes at her staunch defense of her brother.

"Good." Ichigo says, only concentrating on the part of her answer that he had been asking about.

"It's through those gates." Rukia says, as she and Ichigo approach the gates with a Shinigami posted outside of them. They walk forward and the guard immediately stands up straighter.

"Kuchiki Rukia-sama, Captain Kuchiki is expecting you." The guard says formally.

"Thank you," Rukia says as she and Ichigo step forward. The guard gulps as he stares at Ichigo's big zanpakutou, but he steps in front of Ichigo anyways.

"The Captain told me that the only people outside of our division allowed to enter are any of the Captains, Lieutenants, and his sister." The Shinigami tells Ichigo, who scoffs and pushes the man out of his way so hard that he flies about ten meters to the left.

"I'm with Rukia." Ichigo informs him as he and Rukia walk through the gate. Rukia has a horrified expression on her face at that. She glares at Ichigo.

"Real subtle." Rukia hisses under her breath so that they aren't overheard. Ichigo glances at her, and quickens his pace towards the Captain and Lieutenant's offices.

"He was stupid enough to get in my way." Ichigo reminds her, as they reach the doors. Ichigo grabs the doorknob and Rukia has to yank him back by his ear.

"You always knock before entering." Rukia tells him in a hard voice. Ichigo squirms at the pain she's causing him as she pinches his ear.

"Okay!" Ichigo sputters, and Rukia releases him. She crosses her arms and watches as he pounds on the door like the police, rather than just lightly knocking on it. She glares at him, and hopes he didn't startle her brother at a bad moment.

The door swings open, seconds later, and Renji grins at them.

"We felt you coming a few minutes ago, you didn't really have to knock." Renji tells Ichigo with a smirk, which causes Ichigo to turn and glare at Rukia. Rukia gives Renji a hard glare for that comment and wonders if he overheard them outside of the door.

"Good morning, Byakuya ni-sama!" Rukia says, as her brother appears from within his inner office.

"Good morning, Rukia." Byakuya says as he steps closer. Ichigo can feel Rukia tensing up next to him, and Renji is just standing there with a goofy look on his face.

"Byakuya, we came here to talk to you." Ichigo says, straight out, and Rukia's eyes widen. As much as he's changed…some things always seem to stay the same.

"Very well," Byakuya says, as he gives them his undivided attention. Rukia feels shock. Has her brother gotten used to Ichigo's casual attitude?

"We came here to tell you that we want to be together, and since Rukia was concerned that you wouldn't approve, I thought it was best to tell you now rather than later." Ichigo tells him as he crosses his arms and watches Byakuya carefully.

Rukia is bright red, but she looks at Byakuya with pleading eyes. Renji is looking back and forth between Byakuya and Ichigo with a very nervous look on his face as he contemplates the possibility of a fight.

"I love him." Rukia tells Byakuya, who just gives them an expressionless look for a long moment before he responds. Byakuya turns his back on them and begins to head back towards his office, before he turns to the side and turns his head to look at them again.

"I saw this coming a long time ago. I'm hardly surprised. Rukia, even though I didn't think he was good enough for you when I first laid eyes on him, he earned the right to be considered good enough for you, a long time ago. I don't disapprove." Byakuya tells them, before turning back towards his office. He turns back one more time with a parting message for Ichigo. "Hurt her, and you'll be dealing with me." Byakuya says, before walking inside his office and shutting the door. Renji gives an apologetic laugh.

"There's a lot of work to be done, sorry, but I have to go help." Renji tells them, even as he watches them smile happily at each other. He doesn't even think they heard him, they're so focused on one another.

"I don't believe it," Rukia breathes with a loud sigh of relief.

"Me either." Ichigo says, with wide eyes. Of all of the ways he expected the talk to go, that had not been one of the scenarios that he had come up with.

He had imagined having to fight Byakuya, to win the right to date Rukia, but instead, he just went ahead and accepted the situation as they presented it.

"I seriously don't believe it," Rukia says again, and Ichigo nods.

"I get the feeling that he was expecting us to get together a long time ago," Ichigo grumbles, even as he remembers how he spent so long getting up the courage to finally tell Rukia how he feels.

"You're right, he gave me that impression too," Rukia says with agreement.

"And you were all worried," Ichigo says with a grin. Rukia smiles up at him.

"Not anymore!" Rukia says.

"Come on, we need to head back home before Kenpachi decides to hunt me down. I'm sure he's figured out that I'm around here somewhere already." Ichigo says as he glances out the window, expecting to see Kenpachi flying towards them with his zanpakutou out. He breathes a sigh of relief that the man isn't there.

"Yeah, now we need to go tell our friends the good news," Rukia says, with a beaming smile.

Ichigo grins at her and throws his arm around her as they exit the offices of the Sixth Division, and they hurry towards the Senkai gate.

When they arrive back in the living world, Ichigo is astounded that they didn't encounter any drama when they went to Soul Society to inform her brother that they were in love and going to be together. The whole thing just shocks him.

They hold hands as they head to go and treat themselves to something sweet for all the stress that they had been put under, to go and visit Byakuya, to tell him how it was going to be.

Ichigo buys them both ice cream cones. Rukia gets vanilla, and Ichigo gets chocolate. They sit on a bench together and enjoy their cones, frequently glancing at one another to smile in happiness at what has begun for the both of them.

"Thanks for the cone, Ichigo." Rukia says, before she licks the top of the ice cream cone.

"You're welcome. I'm surprised you picked vanilla, to be honest." Ichigo tells her as he watches her lick the cone.

"I hadn't tried it yet, and I like the way it tastes…even though it's not nearly as sweet as a kiss from you," Rukia tells him with a blush, causing Ichigo to lean over and give her a quick kiss on the cheek.

"You make me really happy, you know that?" Ichigo tells her, and Rukia gives him a big smile when he says that.

"That's really good, because you make me incredibly happy." Rukia shares with him, before she licks her cone again.

"Do you want to try mine?" Ichigo asks as he holds his cone out to her. Rukia grins at him, and turns a bit pink when she nods her head yes. She licks in a spot that he has already licked, and she realizes a chocolate cone is tasty too.

"Mmm, it's good." Rukia tells him with a grin.

They don't talk much more as they work on their cones, but they keep throwing each other smiles and happy looks while they eat.

When they are eating the last of their cones, Ichigo yanks a couple of napkins out from under his leg and hands one to Rukia. He tosses out the one that was touching the bench though, and he wipe his face and hands with another one.

"So, who should we go tell first?" Ichigo asks her as he puts his arm around her on the bench.

"Why don't we tell them, all at the same time?" Rukia asks him with as she looks to see what his reaction is to her suggestion. He nods his head slowly and smiles at her.

"That may be the easiest way to do it." Ichigo tells her with a grin.

Rukia pulls out her phone and makes plans for everyone to meet at Sado's apartment, since he offered for them to come over when they called him first. Rukia and Ichigo take their time walking to his apartment, since they're not in any particular hurry.

When they get nearer to Sado's place, they stop touching so that their news isn't already known, before they have the chance to announce it for themselves.

When they get to Sado's apartment, they're surprised that nobody else has shown up yet. Sado opens the door and moves to the side so that they can enter his apartment. Ichigo and Rukia walk in, remove their shoes, put on indoor slippers, and then take seats next to each other on Sado's couch. Sado ends up sitting in a chair next to the couch.

"Everyone else should be here pretty soon," Rukia tells him, and Sado nods.

"Actually I'm glad we're doing this, I have some news of my own." Sado tells them causing Ichigo to take interest.

"What's your news?" Ichigo asks him as he sits forward a bit. Sado grins.

"I want to wait until everyone else is here." Sado tells him, and Rukia nods at him.

"I understand. Sometimes it's easier just to say something once." Rukia explains and Sado gives her a small grin.

"Can you believe we're on our last year at Karakura High? This time next year, we'll be graduates." Ichigo says to Sado, who nods in agreement.

"If you would have told me when we met that we'd end up spending our later years in school fighting against evil spirits, I would have told you that you were insane." Sado tells Ichigo, who nods his head in agreement.

"I never expected to have my whole life turned around by one petite Shinigami though," Ichigo says as he throws a small smile at Rukia. Sado's eyes widen in surprise. Ichigo usually doesn't compliment her in front of the others.

"It is really unbelievable, the way things have turned out." Sado tells him, even as he realizes that things seem different between Ichigo and Kuchiki-san.

There is knocking at the door, and Sado goes to answer it. Inoue and Ishida are at the door, and within moments their shoes are off and they're in seats so that the crew is together.

"Is something going on?" Ishida asks as he pushes up his glasses.

"You first," Sado says to Rukia and Ichigo, who quickly shake their heads no.

"No, we're all here at your place…why don't you go first." Ichigo tells him, since he's curious about Sado's news.

"Okay. The band was noticed by a scout from a major entertainment company. We've signed the contracts, and we may become famous!" Sado says, causing everyone's mouths to drop open and then everyone begins to smile.

"Wow, congratulations, Sado!" Rukia says as she claps her hands together. Ichigo has taken her to hear his band before, and she thought they played wonderful music. It always had a good beat and made her want to move around.

"Yes, that is amazing! Good luck!" Inoue says with a big pleased smile.

"I'll be able to say I know a celebrity! Wow, nice!" Ishida says with a grin.

"Damn…that's kick ass!" Ichigo says as he stares at his friend with his mouth open a bit.

"Thanks, I'm really excited about it," Sado says, even though his face doesn't really show it.

"We'll get backstage passes when you put on your first concert, right?" Ichigo asks him with a grin, and Sado nods his head yes.

"Of course. Now for the two of you, what is your big news?" Sado asks, and Rukia turns pink as Ichigo grins.

"It may not be as exciting as your news, but I'm thrilled about it…" Ichigo says with a spark in his eyes, capturing everyone's full attention, except for Rukia, who's slowly turning redder as the moments pass by.

"Don't keep us in suspense, what is it?" Ishida asks as he peers at Kuchiki-san, who has begun to squirm a little bit on the couch.

"Rukia and I, are officially a couple." Ichigo announces, earning a gasp from Inoue and wide eyes from the guys.

"I saw this coming, years ago." Ishida says, even though he's a bit surprised that they finally got their acts together to become a couple.

Ishida has known a long time, that they had a thing for one another. He's more surprised than anything that it took them this long to getting around to acknowledge that fact.

"I'm happy for you, I think you make a great couple." Sado says, as he gives Ichigo a genuine congratulatory smile.

Suddenly though, everyone is focused on Inoue, since her eyes are filling up with tears.

"I'm sorry…I should be happy for the two of you…but…" Inoue says as a few tears trickle down her cheeks.

"Inoue…what is it?" Rukia asks in concern as she slides off the couch, in front of her friend.

"I'm so sorry Kuchiki-san…but…I've loved him for the longest time, and…this hurts." Inoue says through her gasps, as she cries. Ichigo's eyes widen in shock.

"You love me?" Ichigo asks in a quiet voice. Inoue glances up at him with pain filling her eyes.

"More than you'll ever know, Kurosaki-kun. I always hoped that one day you'd finally notice me…I always hoped you'd realize it." Inoue admits, in front of everyone. Ishida and Sado look fairly horrified, but Ichigo and Rukia look mighty shocked.

"Is this why you haven't dated?" Ishida asks Inoue with wide eyes, and she nods her head yes. Ichigo clears his throat, getting everyone's attention.

"I'm in love with Rukia, it's been that way for a long time, and that won't ever change." Ichigo finally says in a firm voice to Inoue. "I'm sorry that you're hurt, but you and I would never work out." Ichigo finishes up. Rukia gives him a horrified look.

"How serious are you?" Sado asks quietly, and Rukia blushes again, before she gives Inoue a look of concern. Ichigo answers, since Rukia hesitates.

"Serious enough, that we went and told Byakuya." Ichigo says without so much as a waver in his voice.

"Really?" Ishida asks with wide eyes. He's surprised that Kurosaki would go that far, he always imagined him chickening out of telling Byakuya about his true feelings for Kuchiki-san.

"So there's no hope for us?" Inoue asks Ichigo very softly, and he gives her a weird look.

"Not in a million years." Ichigo says, and Rukia jumps up and glares at Ichigo.

"Do you have to be so insensitive? She just said she's loved you for years!" Rukia says, feeling bad for Inoue. She knows what it's like to love a man that is only into another woman.

"I'm not trying to be insensitive, but I don't want to give her false hope either. Inoue…you should date someone, don't keep waiting around for me." Ichigo says, even as he notices that Rukia doesn't like the way he's choosing to handle this all so bluntly.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says, in an appalled voice. Inoue stands up and grabs Rukia's arm.

"Kuchiki-san…it's okay." Inoue says, before she looks back at Ichigo. "Kurosaki-kun…thank you for your honesty." Inoue says, before she sits back down and struggles to get a hold of herself.

"Are you okay?" Rukia asks her in concern, Inoue looks up at her and smiles through her tears.

"I'm going to be okay. I may not be able to be with Kurosaki-kun, but you always will be. If it can't be me, then I'm glad that it's you. I know you'll love him the way he deserves to be loved, and so I'll be okay." Inoue says, quite graciously, feeling bad that she cried when they were obviously so happy about getting together.

"Thank you, Inoue." Rukia says, before she leans over and offers Inoue a hug. Ichigo gives them a strange look of confusion, since he really doesn't get why Rukia's being so kind about Inoue's feelings towards him. If one of his friends admitted their love for her, he'd have a fit about it.

"Thank you, for not being mad at me, Kuchiki-san." Inoue says as she hugs Rukia back.

"We'll always be friends," Rukia assures her as she pulls away and smiles at her. "After all, it's probably those very strong feelings that made you capable of saving Ichigo whenever his life was in danger of expiring." Rukia says, and Inoue nods her head, and wipes the tears from her eyes.

"So, when the two of you get married, you'll definitely invite all of us, right?" Ishida asks, ready to be done with the emotional drama. Rukia shoots Ishida a small smile at that comment, and Ichigo grins hugely.

"Definitely." Ichigo says, and Rukia takes her seat next to him again.

"God help us all if you two decide to reproduce," Ishida says, as he pushes his glasses up. Ichigo and Rukia blush at that comment.

"We'll wait until after we're married to try and do that." Ichigo says, though his cheeks are a bit pink as images of what his and Rukia's kids would look like flash through his head.

"Does anybody else have any news, while we're all here?" Rukia asks as she looks around. Everyone shakes their head no, and Ichigo grabs Rukia's hand and stands.

"I promised Rukia I'd take her out, so we're going to get going," Ichigo says, as he pulls Rukia away with him. She shoots the group a quick smile, but lets Ichigo pull her along. "What did I tell you, Rukia? Didn't I say it will work?" Ichigo asks her with a wink.

"See you later!" Rukia says, as she discards the slippers for her shoes.

Inoue watches them leave, and feels a heaviness in her heart, from feeling acceptance in her brain.

_Kurosaki-kun deserves to be happy, and now he's with the one who really makes him happy. I guess the better woman won._


	101. As Requested: Fun Sized 2

_**A/N-I had a request to do a continuation of this, and so here it is, and yes it includes a lemon! This is dedicated to the one that requested it. **_

_Fun Sized 2_

Isshin smiles. It's been a week since he instructed Rukia to flirt back with Ichigo, and already there's been a change in how the two interact. Ichigo has been blushing a lot around Rukia, and she has been looking pretty satisfied since she decided to take Isshin's advice.

The problem is, that they never have enough time alone with each other. Isshin sensed that they need this, and so he decided to take Karin and Yuzu clothes shopping for the day. The girls are already ready to leave, and all that's left, is to say good-bye to the flirtatious couple.

"Ichigo! Rukia-chan!" Isshin yells up the stairs, and they both appear at the top of the stairs together, moments later.

"What is it?" Ichigo asks his father.

"I'm taking Karin and Yuzu clothes shopping. We won't be back for several hours." Isshin says, and he watches his son's face turn pink. Rukia has a small smile playing at her lips and Isshin grins at them.

"Okay," Ichigo says, and Isshin keeps smiling up at them.

"Alright you two, have fun while I'm gone." Isshin says in a very suggestive way before he turns and heads towards the door where the girls are waiting for him. He didn't miss how his son's face turned red, or how Rukia's smile seemed to grow a bit bigger at his words.

Ichigo and Rukia hear the door as the rest of Ichigo's family leaves, and they head back into Ichigo's bedroom.

"Ichigo." Rukia says as he's closing his bedroom door. Ichigo turns around, and Rukia jumps on him.

"Rukia?" Ichigo asks as she wraps her legs around his waist and holds onto his neck. He feels his face completely heating up as he looks at the satisfied smile that's on her face.

"Yes Ichigo?" Rukia asks as she grins at him.

"What are you doing?" Ichigo asks in a tight voice, as he feels his body starting to react to her hanging off of him.

"Well you know I'm fun sized, but I bet you have no idea just how fun I am, since you've been so shy for the past week." Rukia informs him with a sparkle in her eyes. Ichigo blushes.

It's true. Since she informed him that he had a thing for fun sized girls, he's stopped teasing her, and instead he's felt incredibly nervous in her company since that day. Now that he knows, that she knows, how he really feels, he's been at a loss as to what he's supposed to do now. He looks off to the side as he keeps on blushing.

"What exactly did you expect?" Ichigo finally asks as he walks over to the bed to sit down.

Rukia stays hanging on his neck with her legs wrapped around him, and he groans when he sits down and she lands right in his lap, right where it affects him the most. He is fully aroused now, and he's certain that she can feel it.

"I don't know…something." Rukia says as she keeps smiling.

Ichigo looks into her big blue eyes, and he feels like he must be in the middle of a dream, to have Rukia sitting on his lap, facing him, with her arms around his neck, and her legs wrapped around his waist.

"Something tells me that you have something specific in mind." Ichigo says, as he feels himself getting sucked into the blue of her eyes.

"I've heard that making love is incredibly fun." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo's eyes widen at those words. She adjusts her bottom a bit and Ichigo closes his eyes at the feelings that brings on, considering she's on top of him.

"I wouldn't know, firsthand." Ichigo admits with his eyes still closed. He feels like his face is radiating heat as he confesses that much.

"Me either…want to find out?" Rukia asks him with her eyes shining like the stars. Ichigo opens his eyes and gives her a surprised look.

"You sure are casual about it, for someone who has never experienced it before." Ichigo tells her, since all he's been able to do is blush since his father left the house.

"I've had a lot longer to wonder what it's like than you have." Rukia tells him softly, effectively reminding him of their age difference…not that it's at all obvious as he stares at her face. Her skin looks softer than any of the girls in his class…and her petite body doesn't give any indication that she's already lived for well over a century.

"That may be true…but we don't have any kind of commitment." Ichigo tells her in a soft voice, and Rukia glares at him.

"We sure as hell do have a commitment! If I catch you with another girl, I'll kick your ass!" Rukia tells him, and Ichigo smiles at that.

"You won't ever catch me with another girl…because you were right. I do have a thing for a certain fun sized girl living in my house. No other girl even compares to you." Ichigo tells her in a soft voice. Rukia's eyes widen.

_Ichigo is such a sweet talker…why does my entire body throb with excitement after hearing him say that?_

"You should know by now…that you belong to me." Rukia tells him as she keeps on grinning, and Ichigo knows most guys might get scared by hearing a statement come from a girl who they haven't even slept with yet…but the words are strangely comforting to him, coming from her.

"And what about you? Who do you belong to?" Ichigo asks her softly, knowing he's about to steal a kiss from her, the moment she answers correctly. She winks at him.

"I know who I want to belong to…" Rukia says as she gives him a meaningful stare. Ichigo grins. It wasn't the answer he was looking for, but it's good enough.

Ichigo leans forward and gently presses his lips against her own, and then he closes his eyes as he wraps his arms around her and begins to deepen the kiss.

Rukia surprises him by responding very strongly, and he loses track of who was kissing who as she quickly becomes the more aggressive between the two of them, as the kiss goes on. Ichigo feels like his head is spinning as she kisses him until his mind is a complete jumble.

When they finally pull away and meet each other's eyes, Ichigo lets out a big breath as he had no idea she had the power to make him forget his embarrassment. He had no idea he could be so affected by just a kiss.

Rukia slides off his lap, and Ichigo feels a tiny bit of disappointment, until she turns around and moves her hair to the side.

"Can you unzip this?" Rukia asks him, and Ichigo is immediately tomato red at that question.

He stands up behind her and his hand shakes a bit as he takes the zipper in his index finger and thumb. He uses his left hand to hold the upper part of the back of the dress to make the unzipping much easier. Once he's slid it completely down, Rukia turns around and blushes as she shrugs her arms out of the dress, and it falls at a heap around her ankles.

Rukia has to keep herself from laughing at the expression on Ichigo's face. She's only got on a pair of rabbit panties, but he's not paying attention to that. He had no idea such a knockout body was hidden underneath her outfits and Shinigami robes.

"Uh…" Ichigo says, as he flushes. Even though this isn't his first time seeing a woman wearing so little, this is the first time he's seen Rukia wearing so little, and his fingers are itching to touch her.

Ichigo's obvious hesitation and nervousness, actually make everything much easier for Rukia. It makes her feel very in control of the whole situation, since he isn't pawing at her and making her feel like she's just some sort of sex object.

She pushes him back to be sitting on the bed and she takes the bottom of his shirt and starts to lift it up. Ichigo lifts his arms and lets her remove his shirt. When she's got it off, she leans over and gives him a kiss as she runs her hands all over his chest, stomach, shoulders, and arms.

"Wow." Rukia says, with appreciation after she pulls away, as her hands slide over his skin, causing him to shiver from the excitement her touch brings him, with each centimeter of skin that her soft hands travel over. Ichigo starts to run his hands up and down her back and then he runs a few fingers through her hair. She slowly climbs back onto the bed, so that her knees are on the bed and she's straddling him.

"Rukia." Ichigo says before he leans forward to kiss her again. He grows a bit bolder and brings his hands around to her front and begins to touch her there.

He feels like his body is throbbing as his hands run over her breasts. He feels her nipples harden as his fingers run over them, and he deepens the kiss, and suddenly becomes the aggressor.

Rukia feels like she's being swept up in some sort of erotic dream as her body reacts so strongly to the feeling of his hands touching her bare skin, and she lets herself be completely taken over by the passion that he's brought to her entire being.

Rukia lets her hands keep running over his torso, since she had no idea that it would feel so good to touch him like this. She never imagined that a man could feel so firm and good as she squeezes his shoulders and lets her hands run through his hair.

They stay like that, enjoying the new feelings of kissing and making out for quite awhile before Rukia starts to unbutton his pants, which causes Ichigo to suck his breath in quickly. She had asked him if he wanted to make love, but now he realizes she hadn't just been teasing him.

She gets back off of the bed and gives him an expectant look. Ichigo stands, like he's fairly sure she wanted him to do, and Rukia grins as she unzips his pants and works them down so that he's in only his boxers. Once she has his pants off, she steps towards him and wraps her arms around him as she presses the front of her body against the front of his.

"Ichigo…" Rukia murmurs as she rubs her cheek against his chest, and Ichigo lets out a big wavering breath as he holds her close to him. Once again he takes one hand and runs it through her silky hair. He just can't get enough of touching her like this.

"Rukia." Ichigo says in a shaky voice as her hands travel to the waistband of his boxers and she starts to slide them down. Ichigo's breath only gets more shaky as his boxers fall to the floor.

"Mmm." Rukia's voice sounds so sexy Ichigo can only close his eyes and shiver. Then she touches the area his boxers had covered, and his eyes pop open in surprise.

"Rukia!" Ichigo says in an excited voice as her hand starts to move to make him feel nothing but pleasure.

Ichigo doesn't even realize that his hands have settled at the top of her panties, but then he realizes and he slowly starts to push them down. He squeezes her butt after he pushes them down enough to do that, and then he steps away from her, causing her hand to fall away from him. He quickly pulls her rabbit underwear the rest of the way down, and then he picks her up and sets her in the bed.

Rukia's eyes look wide and happy as he climbs on top of her and begins to kiss her.

Within a minute they're kissing excitedly, both reveling at the feelings brought about by being in his bed naked together. Ichigo's hand travels up and down her front, and then he rolls to the side in order to touch her in between her legs.

Rukia lets out a very loud gasp as he does so, and Ichigo gives her a lazy smile, as her body starts to visibly tremble before his eyes. He leans over to kiss her as he pleasures her, and she's incapable of responding the way she did before, due to the distraction his hands are causing for her. Her reaction makes Ichigo feel like he has sense of power as she lets out little mewing sounds and shakes as he keeps touching her.

He can feel how much she enjoys it, because the evidence is against his fingers. He pulls away and looks at her beautiful perky breasts and he does what he's been wanting to do since he saw them.

Rukia lets out a moan and a gasp at the same time when he starts to lick her nipples as his hand keeps working between her legs. She never knew she could be made to feel like this. She didn't know Ichigo's touch would feel so wonderful, so right. If she had known…they would have done this a long time ago.

"Oh god…Ichigo." Rukia says in a breathless voice as she starts to squirm from the intensity of all of the feelings he's brought rushing to her body.

Ichigo stops with the making out, even though it feels incredibly good, because his body is demanding more now. He gets back on top of her and leans down to kiss her.

"Rukia…I love you." Ichigo whispers softly as he settles in between her legs. Rukia smiles broadly at that. She already knew, but it's sweet that he's telling her anyways.

"I love you too," Rukia says, and that's when Ichigo tenses up and then gives one good hard push inside of her. He feels it when he pushes past the barrier of her virginity, and never did he even imagine that being inside of her would feel as heavenly as this.

"Oh….my….god." Ichigo says in an affected whisper and Rukia's body completely tenses up against his own and she lets out a very high sounding squeak of pain as he slides fully inside of her.

She takes a few deep breaths as he stays put a minute after hearing her reaction and then she realizes that she and Ichigo are actually…doing it.

She can feel her body throbbing from him pushing inside of her, but her anticipation and excitement haven't left, from their earlier touching and teasing. In fact, she's incredibly turned on that his body is right up against hers and he's inside of her. She runs her hands down his back until she grasps his butt, and then she squeezes it and lets out a little sigh.

Upon hearing that, Ichigo takes it as a sign that the pain has subsided, and he slowly begins to move, and Rukia gasps at the rush of feelings that action causes.

Ichigo pulls away from her chest and balances his weight on the bed with his arms so that he can look at her as they make love for the first time. Her eyes are closed, and her face looks even more beautiful than usual as she reacts to the new feelings flying throughout her entire body.

Ichigo stares as her eyes begin to open slowly and stare into his own as he keeps pushing into her. Once they've met eyes, Ichigo leans down to kiss her again before he pulls away. He feels everything starting to build in his body as he keeps going, and he realizes he won't be able to keep going much longer.

Rukia looks up at him and runs her hands through his hair.

"Ichigo!" Rukia says urgently, and Ichigo groans loudly at that. He can't keep himself under control at all, after hearing that. He closes his eyes tight, as his body begins to shudder quite violently, at the feeling of climaxing in a girl for the first time in his life.

He feels completely drained after that happens and he falls onto Rukia who holds him tight in her arms even as she revels in the fact that she has finally made love, and she's happy she waited for Ichigo, since it was his first time too.

"You weren't kidding when you said you were fun sized." Ichigo says in a whisper as he finally rolls to the side and slides out of her in the process. Rukia sucks her breath in at that feeling and gives him a sideways grin.

"I would choose several other words to describe what we just did before I'd choose the word fun." Rukia tells him with a look of wonder on her face.

"Oh yeah? How would you describe it?" Ichigo asks with a smile, since he knows he wouldn't choose fun as his first description either.

"Wondrous, amazing, and an incredibly bonding experience." Rukia says immediately, and Ichigo smiles.

"I'm glad that I made love to you." Ichigo tells her in a soft voice before he kisses her again.

Rukia kisses him back happily, and she doesn't bother to tell him what's on her mind.

_Damn Ichigo, you were worth the wait._


	102. As Requested: Talk About Bankai 2

_**A/N- I had a request to do a continuation regarding the talk about Bankai, where Rukia gains hers. It will be a different type of bankai from the last bankai I wrote up for her…since there are so many options considering her type of zanpakutou. This is dedicated to the one that requested it, please enjoy!**_

_Talk About Bankai 2_

Ever since their talk, Rukia has come closer and closer to obtaining bankai, not that she's kept Ichigo updated on it, she can feel she's at the breaking point to earn it, since her resolve to protect Ichigo has done nothing but grow and grow since the first moment she laid eyes on him.

Now that she can feel herself on the brink of obtaining that ultimate power, she wants Ichigo to be there to witness it, she wants him to know all that she can contribute in the battles ahead with much stronger foes. His strength is captain class, and hers is only at a lieutenant's level until she can obtain bankai.

With the summer vacation on them, now is the perfect time to take him to Soul Society so that he can watch her train, and they can maybe even find someplace private, since she feels like she can obtain it the first time more easily there due to all of the spirit particles that are there in comparison to the real world. She's already received the approval from her captain.

She walks into his bedroom where he's still sleeping and she decides she is sick of waiting for his father to wake him up. She'll do it herself. She bites her lip as she considers the best way to go about this. She figures she should do something he's used to, and so she jumps high into the air and lands on his stomach, causing him to fly awake instantly.

Ichigo is prepared to deck his father, but he keeps his arm back when he sees Rukia sitting on his stomach and smiling at him.

They've been dating ever since he admitted exactly how he had to earn his bankai, and even though that was several months ago, it all still seems so new and exciting for him.

He lays his arm at his side, and ignores the pain in his stomach from her rude awakening and gives her a bit of an irritated look.

"I almost punched you, don't wake me up like that, I thought you were my father." Ichigo tells her in a serious voice. Rukia just keeps smiling.

"I can handle you." Rukia says as she keeps grinning. Ichigo smiles back.

"That may be true, but if I hit you on accident, I would never stop feeling guilty. Next time wake me up nice, so that I know it's you." Ichigo asks her, and Rukia nods her head in agreement.

"Come on, I want to go to Soul Society." Rukia tells him and Ichigo's eyes widen.

"What for?" Ichigo asks, as he always has a certain dread about going there.

"Captain Ukitake agreed to let me bring you to Soul Society for training for two weeks!" Rukia says with a smile. Ichigo rolls his eyes at her.

"What do I need training for?" Ichigo asks with a scoff. Rukia gives him a hard glare.

"It's for my training. I wanted you to come and be with me, but if you'd rather stay here…by yourself…for the next two weeks…then be my guest!" Rukia says in an angry and hurt tone. Ichigo realizes he fucked up.

"I'm sorry Rukia…I'll come." Ichigo says in an embarrassed voice.

This is the first time she's ever talked to him this way, since they started dating, and he realizes that he does not like it, when she casts that unhappy look at him.

"If you're sure…" Rukia says, crossing her arms mutinously. Ichigo sighs.

"There will be someone here, to protect Karakura Town while we're gone, right?" Ichigo asks, assuming she already made those types of arrangements.

"Of course!" Rukia says as though he's an idiot, and Ichigo shakes his head.

"I'm not always in the right frame of mind when I first wake up. I really would like to come with you to Soul Society…besides…two weeks without you here sounds really boring." Ichigo says as he gives her a grin. Rukia seems satisfied and she crawls closer to him and leans down to give him a quick kiss.

"I forgive you. Come on!" Rukia says excitedly, and Ichigo sighs. He walks over to the closet, where Kon managed to sleep through their loud talking, and he bops Kon's head with his Shinigami license. Once he has the pill, he wipes it on his shirt and swallows it.

Rukia nods her head with satisfaction as Kon's eyes open angrily in Ichigo's body.

"Don't wake me up like that!" Kon screeches angrily. "I was having such a good dream about that Shinigami with the humongous knockers…it was such a sweet dream!" Kon wails in Ichigo's body, which Ichigo finds disturbing, considering the words coming out of his own mouth.

"Shut up, pervert!" Ichigo growls and Kon shuts up.

"Ichigo and I will be gone awhile. If the family asks about me, tell them that I was invited to go on vacation with a friend, last minute and didn't want to wake them." Rukia orders Kon. Kon nods his head submissively.

"Behave yourself, and look after my family!" Ichigo orders next, and Kon nods again.

"Come on Ichigo!" Rukia says excitedly as she grabs his hand. They walk over to the window and Ichigo opens it. They don't let go of each other's hands as they jump out of the window and move away from Ichigo's street.

Ever since they learned that his amazing spiritual power has the ability to affect others, it's safe to assume that other people that they don't know about have been affected, and Rukia doesn't want any humans to see her open the gates to Soul Society. They arrive on a roof of a building, a few blocks away from Ichigo's home, and Rukia opens the gate there.

When they arrive in Soul Society, Captain Ukitake is there to greet them.

"Kuchiki! Ichigo-kun!" Ukitake says with a welcoming smile, and Ichigo can't help but grin. It's next to impossible to hate this man.

"Good morning, Captain Ukitake!" Rukia says as she bows her head.

"Hello Ukitake-san." Ichigo says with a friendly grin. Ukitake just keeps smiling at them both.

"Is the area that I trained with Inoue still deserted and available for use?" Rukia asks hopefully, and Ukitake chuckles a bit at that. He had figured that would be one of her first questions.

"Yes. It's all yours." Ukitake says and Rukia smiles and bows deeply to him.

"Thank you very much, Captain Ukitake!" Rukia says before she grabs Ichigo's hand and starts to lead him to the place. Ichigo blushes a bit at that. They've been pretty obvious about their relationship in the living world, but he hasn't been here since they started dating.

"Where are we going?" Ichigo asks, and Rukia lets go of his hand.

"Follow me!" Rukia says, ignoring his question, as she starts to use shunpo. Ichigo does as she asks, and follows her for a few minutes until they reach a large deserted area, perfect for training.

"This is great!" Ichigo says, and Rukia grins at him.

"You can have a seat right there." Rukia says as she points, and Ichigo's eyes fall a bit. Now that he's here, he has the strong desire to train alongside her. He wonders why she's having him sit, until she releases her zanpakutou and holds it out in front of her.

Ichigo's eyes pop open when her zanpakutou materializes. All of a sudden, her love for rabbits makes sense. Her materialized zanpakutou is a cross between a woman and a snow hare. She has white rabbit ears, black hair, and a white fluffy rabbit's tail on her rear end. Ichigo's eyes widen at the sight of her. She's extremely small, and her eyes are very perceptive. In that one respect, she reminds him of Zangetsu.

"That is Sode No Shirayuki?" Ichigo asks in shock, as he watches the two begin to spar. Sode No Shirayuki likes to jump high into the air and come down hard, but when she does, you can barely tell what angle she's coming from, since she's so damned fast, even to Ichigo's eyes.

Ichigo watches as Rukia quickly begins to dominate Sode No Shirayuki, and he's impressed. He's always refused to battle with Rukia, since he loves her, and didn't want to accidentally hurt her, not to mention he didn't want to get caught in any of her kidou blasts, which are strong enough to not want to be caught on the receiving end of them.

Rukia feels so strong, and so good at the way the training is going, since she has the upper hand on Sode No Shirayuki. They keep at it for hours, until Rukia starts to feel pain in her stomach from not eating all day long. She seals her zanpakutou, and grins at Ichigo.

"I'm shocked…not only have you reached materialization…you look like you're on the verge of bankai." Ichigo tells her as they head towards the Thirteenth Division Headquarters, where their cafeteria is located.

When they get there, everyone else has finished, but Rukia walks back into the kitchen, and Ichigo follows along. Rukia goes into the refrigerator and pulls out some pork. Ichigo watches in shock as she acts like she's about to start cooking.

"Ichigo, we're going to go outside where the grill is." Rukia says, and Ichigo's mouth drops open at the implication that she knows how to use a grill.

"Rukia…you can cook?" Ichigo asks in shock. Rukia gives him a look of confusion.

"How in the hell do you think I survived before I was adopted by the Kuchiki clan?" Rukia asks him in a strange voice. Ichigo's eyes widen.

_That's right, she wasn't always the adopted princess of a noble clan…she used to be without a family, with only Renji and a couple of others as friends. _

"I didn't mean to offend you, it's just that you never offered to help at home…" Ichigo says as he gives her a look, and Rukia blushes.

"I don't know how to use the stove or the oven…but I can grill." Rukia mumbles at him. "I can also cut and cook vegetables…over a fire." Rukia says in a low voice. "I can also steal food if necessary." She adds, and Ichigo starts to feel like an ass.

"I didn't mean to imply-" Ichigo says, feeling shitty, and Rukia stops him by spinning around and giving him a radiant smile.

"It's okay, I'm not mad. I'm sure I'll surprise you again, in our time together." Rukia says before she turns and heads out the door. Ichigo follows with a small smile on his face.

_Later…_

Rukia didn't lie, she can cook. Ichigo eats every last bit of meat that she placed in front of him, and it had been cooked perfectly. He feels stuffed by the time he finishes.

"What now?" Ichigo asks and Rukia rolls her eyes.

"Back to training." Rukia tells him in a no-nonsense voice.

Ichigo's eyes widen. He knows she's close, but she must be able to practically feel it at her fingertips to not want to stop unless it's to eat. He thought she'd lead him to wherever he's supposed to sleep, once they finished eating.

Rukia fights with Sode No Shirayuki until very late, and then she exhaustedly drags him to the Thirteenth Division Housing Quarters. She drags him to the lieutenant's office which Ukitake-san had given her permission to use on their visit, and Ichigo is quite certain that she's asleep before her head hits the pillow, since she nearly fell into the bed. Ichigo gives her a look of concern, but he adjusts her and then looks around.

_That's convenient, there's only one bed in here._

Ichigo pushes her over, and lays down, on the door side, next to her and he throws his arm around her as they sleep.

Ichigo wakes up to Rukia blowing in his ear, and he sits up with a sigh. The sun is barely rising, which means they didn't get a whole lot of sleep. Ichigo can hardly believe that she looks so refreshed, for training so hard and then sleeping so little.

"Good morning, Rukia." Ichigo says as he stands, yawns, and rubs his eyes.

"Time to go back to training." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo nods his head.

When they get to the old training grounds, Ichigo ends up taking a nap as she spars with Sode No Shirayuki, but he wakes up when he hears Rukia land close to him, breathing really hard, and Ichigo's eyes open wide as the tip of Rukia's zanpakutou finds pay dirt.

In front of his eyes, Rukia defeats Sode No Shirayuki by slicing her throat. Rukia falls to her knees, gasping, and Ichigo sits forward as Sode No Shirayuki appears behind her. Rukia hasn't looked Ichigo's way, and he wonders if she noticed him napping as she trained.

Rukia turns to face Sode No Shirayuki, and has her back completely to Ichigo. Ichigo watches, quietly as Sode No Shirayuki tells Rukia that she is ready to start training with her bankai. Ichigo gasps as Rukia stares up at Sode No Shirayuki. Ichigo stands and walks closer, and he hears when Sode No Shirayuki tells Rukia how to call upon her bankai.

"The Waltz of the Snow Angel, Sode No Shirayuki." Sode No Shirayuki says, before she gives Rukia a nod to go ahead and try it. Ichigo quickly backs a good distance away, as Rukia smiles broadly and stands up and holds out her zanpakutou.

"The Waltz of the Snow Angel, Sode No Shirayuki!" Rukia say, and she loses sight of the changes, due to all of the reiatsu flying in the air around her, due to her release. Ichigo watches in anticipation, as the reiatsu dissipates, and his eyes widen in wonder at the sight of Rukia in bankai.

"Amazing." Ichigo breathes as he stares at her with sheer admiration.

There is snow falling all around Rukia, and she has a circle of ice about eight feet in diameter around her, but that's not what has caught Ichigo's attention.

Like her brother, Rukia is no longer holding a zanpakutou while she's in bankai. Instead, there is a mass of snow and ice behind her, as though she's about to deliver the avalanche of a lifetime, upon anybody who stands in her way.

"This avalanche can be prepared to deliver attacks without any downtime in between attacks. You can even push the avalanche in every direction around yourself if you so desire. This represents me. You can also use your dances while in bankai, though the effect will be much different." Sode No Shirayuki tells her, and Rukia's eyes widen.

"Different? How so?" Rukia asks.

"If you use your first dance, while in bankai, you will automatically create a space in the ground, filled with water, beneath your opponent's feet. The moment your opponent's feet hit the water, not only are they frozen, but then they get pounded into the ground creating a hole, while frozen, and then the hole flips, so that the ground is all you see after the move. Essentially, it's an ice burial." Sode No Shirayuki explains, and Rukia has a hard time picturing it in her mind.

Ichigo's mouth drops open. He understood Sode No Shirayuki and her explanation perfectly. He imagines being frozen in ice…then shoved into the ground, and then having the ground flipped to essentially bury him. It gives him the chills.

"That would be a shitty way to die." Ichigo mutters under his breath, and he feels lucky that neither Rukia or Sode No Shirayuki heard that.

"And what about the second dance?" Rukia asks excitedly.

"It will pull from your avalanche, but in that instance, instead of it being one straight shot of a large amount of ice and water, it will have the ability to follow your opponent, should they move, since it's drawing from the avalanche, not only that, but they'll be covered in a mountain of ice, not like now.

Rukia knows to understand, she'll have to train with it, but she decides to ask anyways.

"What about my third dance?" Rukia asks softly, and Sode No Shirayuki nods her head with a small grin.

"If you call for your third dance, from your bare hand will be able to shoot ice rods or ice cycles at your opponent. The avalanche will be completely under your control, through the duration of your bankai, and as long as you're conscious, your avalanche will always be accessible to you. Everything comes from that, even though it's not always obvious." Sode No Shirayuki says.

"Can we try?" Rukia asks Sode No Shirayuki, and the black haired woman smiles at that.

"I was waiting for you to say that. Very well, you'd be better off with a demonstration anyways." Sode No Shirayuki says, as she steps back.

Rukia practices sending the avalanche at Sode No Shirayuki, and she finds that it's terribly easy for her to do so. It also leaves her hands open for kidou.

"First Dance, White Moon!" Rukia shouts, and she watches in amazement as she still gets her opponent trapped in her circle, but her circle also wipes away part of the ground, and replaces it with solid ice. Rukia's eyes widen as the entire cased space lifts up in the air, and then flips around and then drops back into the earth.

"Instant burial." Ichigo mutters, wide eyed. He had a picture in his mind of what that would look like, but it was far more amazing seeing it, than picturing it.

Sode No Shirayuki reappears, and Rukia aims again.

"Second Dance, White Ripple!" Rukia calls out and Ichigo's eye pop out of his head as Sode No Shirayuki tries to dodge the hit, only to have the dance follow her, and when it catches up to her, it just keeps piling on. Ichigo watches as a mountain of ice now stands in the place of where Sode No Shirayuki just stood.

"Kuchiki!" Ukitake runs over waving his hands.

"Captain Ukitake!" Rukia says in an excited voice.

"Congratulations! Can you please get rid of that mountain though?" Ukitake says as he points, and Rukia blushes.

"Sorry!" Rukia says with a bow.

"You only have about five more minutes of available time to practice before the barrier busts down, I suggest you use it wisely." Ukitake says with a smile.

Ichigo understands, Rukia's bankai is hidden from the rest of Soul Society, because Ukitake put up a barrier. If they knew she had a bankai, they'd probably want her to become a captain.

"Understood, I'll be done in five minutes." Rukia says and Ukitake turns to walk away.

"You want to see the last dance?" Sode No Shirayuki says with a smile. Rukia's eyes get brighter.

"You'd better believe it!" Rukia says with a grin. "Third Dance, White Blade!" Rukia calls out and she feels the ice pounding down her arms, and then out of her hand shoots a long ice ring, so long she's able to stab Sode No Shirayuki with it, and still have ice coming out of her hand.

"It works with both hands, and you can determine how long to make your ice rods, and you can choose to make them flat, rounded, or pointed." Sode No Shirayuki says as the ice disappears from Rukia's attack.

"Damn Rukia…that's fucking awesome." Ichigo says in a proud voice. Rukia smiles. She had noticed his eyes open when Captain Ukitake came, and she's glad that he got to see her bankai.

"Thanks, Ichigo." Rukia says with a genuine smile, as she seals her zanpakutou. Ichigo glances at her as they head towards the Thirteenth Division Headquarters to go and eat. He shakes his head in wonder.

_She's one dangerous little woman._


	103. As Requested: Perfect

**A/N-I had a request to continue a story, and so this is the third part following chapters 94 & 100. It's dedicated to the one that requested it. For this one, Ichigo is 19 years old. Please enjoy it!**

_Perfect_

Ichigo smiles as he turns the ring around on his finger. He had already managed to get Byakuya's blessing to ask Rukia for her hand in marriage today, after they've spent over a year together. Now that he's graduated from Karakura High School, he's really ready to take that grown up step and swear to be with her forever.

Getting Byakuya's blessing had been harder than Ichigo had expected, not because of her brother specifically, but to get to Soul Society without Rukia finding out, was the hardest part.

Ichigo ended up receiving help from an unlikely source. He had purely by chance, run into Hanatarou a week ago, who was on a visit to the living world, when he was trying to figure out how to get to Soul Society, and had arranged on that day to have Hanatarou come back today, his next day off, to open the gate to Soul Society from the living world, for Ichigo to get to Soul Society.

Today, Hanatarou stayed behind and visited with Rukia, while Ichigo was gone to get Byakuya's approval, for asking Rukia, for her hand in marriage.

Once again, Ichigo was denied access to the Sixth Division's Headquarters, but this time he didn't just push the guy out of his way, he knocked him unconscious, since he was in no mood to be turned down after all the trouble it took just to get there.

Byakuya had no expression on his face at all, as Ichigo had explained his reason for coming to Soul Society unannounced. After Ichigo explained that he wanted Byakuya's blessing to ask for Rukia's hand in marriage, Byakuya had been silent for nearly a minute. Then Byakuya had looked up at Ichigo and had simply nodded his head. Then he seemed to change his mind, and decided he had something to say as well.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, I expect you to love and protect my sister, with the same dedication that you had when you saved her life, back when Aizen had all of Soul Society fooled. The only reason I am giving you my blessing, is because you moved heaven and earth for Rukia. I expect you to continue to do so until you cease to exist." Byakuya said in a tight voice, and Ichigo wondered if the man was actually feeling emotional under that emotionless mask that he constantly wears.

"I give you my word." Ichigo had told him solemnly, and Byakuya had been very surprised that those words were quite comforting. Ichigo noticed that his words pleased Byakuya since the noble man actually cracked a small smile for a millisecond.

Byakuya had given Ichigo a dismissive nod, and even though it bugged Ichigo, he just irritated Byakuya back before he walked out of the office, by calling out loudly to him that he'll never call him ni-sama. Ichigo swore he heard Byakuya bust up into laughter, after he closed the door behind him.

Ichigo had hightailed his ass back to the Senkai gate as quickly as his shunpo would allow him to, without being in bankai. Unfortunately for Ichigo, Shiba Kuukaku had waiting for him at the Senkai gate.

"You were actually going to leave without coming to see me? You ungrateful brat!" Kuukaku had yelled before punching Ichigo in the nose.

Ichigo had been forced to postpone heading home in order to spend an hour walking around Soul Society, and he had been completely nervous the whole time, just waiting for Kenpachi to finally figure out that he hadn't left yet, since the man has his reiatsu memorized.

Ichigo confided in Kuukaku that he planned to propose to Rukia, and she had smiled hugely and promised to be at the wedding. Ichigo found that a bit strange, since he hadn't actually invited her, but he just figured he would have to remember to mention to Rukia that Ganju and Kuukaku would be coming to their wedding.

When Ichigo finally thought he was going to be able to get back to Rukia, he was waylaid once again by Ukitake, who was genuinely happy when Ichigo told him his plans for proposing to Rukia.

Ukitake also told Ichigo he'd come to the wedding, and that Ichigo should probably expect a lot of people from Soul Society to show up.

"I hope she says yes then, because Ganju and Kuukaku are planning on coming too," Ichigo had told Ukitake, who'd just laughed and patted Ichigo's shoulder in a very fatherly type way. Finally Ichigo managed to run through the gate before anybody else could slow him down.

When he had arrived back home, he was glad that Rukia wasn't home. He figured she and Hanatarou went out for cake or ice cream together, so that's why he's twirling the ring around his finger, and smiling like he's got a huge secret.

Ichigo has a lot of strengths, but thinking up a really romantic way to ask her to marry him, is not one of them. Ichigo had pondered it quite a bit for the past two weeks that he had the ring in his possession, and he's getting a bit sick not seeing it on her finger, where it belongs.

He already knew that he wanted his proposal to be a private thing, and not public. It will be hard enough to get down on one knee to ask for her marriage…and he'd rather not do it in front of a crowd and draw attention to them.

Things haven't changed at all, in regards to people picking fights with him over his hair color, and he really doesn't want to get into a fight if someone decided to pick the time he was proposing to start an altercation.

Knowing that he wanted it to be private doesn't help matters at all though, since he still hasn't figured out a romantic way to ask her. In his mind, it's romantic enough that he bought the ring and plans to get on one knee to ask her, but there's no way he'd actually say that out loud to her. Women have a tendency to have a different opinion of what's romantic, at least that's what Ichigo's gut tells him.

Ichigo also worries that a damned hollow attack will disrupt their proposal, and he doesn't even know what to do about that. He considers leaving Sado with Rukia's spirit phone so that he can take care of any trouble, but then Rukia would want to know why he was taking her phone.

He doesn't want to do it at home, for fear a member of his family will witness the moment, and he doesn't need them making it even less romantic than what it's sure to be, considering he hasn't come up with any ideas that seem worthy for being romantic enough to ask her to be with him for the rest of their lives.

Ichigo puts the ring in the box, and in his pocket. He heads downstairs, and looks around in surprise that his family isn't around. He spots the newspaper on the coffee table and so he sits down on the couch and begins to leaf through it.

Ichigo's eyes light up in pleasure when he realizes that there is a fireworks show happening tonight. He thinks that asking her during the grande finale will be the most romantic way he can possibly come up with, and so he checks the times, and then checks the clock.

"If she gets back in the next two hours, I can ask her tonight." Ichigo mumbles with silly smile and pink cheeks. He's glad that nobody's around to witness the idiotic expression on his face as everything just comes together.

Ichigo realizes he can also call her if she's not back in an hour to make sure she's around in time to go out with him.

The time passes by slowly, and Ichigo's nerves are shot by the time she walks in the door with Hanatarou, a half hour later.

"Ichigo-san!" Hanatarou says, with a smile.

"Yo, Hanatarou." Ichigo says with a grin before he looks at Rukia. "Yo." Ichigo says softly, and Rukia grins at him.

"Hello, Ichigo." Rukia says, and before she can ask him why he wasn't around today, Ichigo quickly asks her out.

"Want to go on a date tonight?" Ichigo asks her, and Rukia smiles happily.

"Of course," Rukia tells him, and Hanatarou shoots Ichigo a knowing smile.

"I have to be getting back to Soul Society," Hanatarou says, as he bows to them both. Rukia grins at him.

"It's always fun when you come and visit!" Rukia says, and she waves as he's walking out the door.

"Did you two have fun?" Ichigo asks as he walks over to her, and Rukia smiles.

"We went to the cake shop, Hanatarou was in heaven." Rukia admits with sparkling eyes, and Ichigo chuckles.

"Then I'm sure you had fun," Ichigo says, since he knows how much she loves sweets.

Rukia gives Ichigo a big smile and Ichigo leans down to kiss her. It's nice that they're all alone, and since he hasn't seen her all day, he really enjoys the kiss.

Isshin peeks in through the window, as he comes home with the girls, and he grins when he sees Rukia and Ichigo kissing in the house. He waits for them to pull away before he lets the girls go inside, and he immediately punches Ichigo for missing dinner. Ichigo grabs his face and then swings back. His father dodges his punch.

"You missed going out for pizza." Isshin tells Ichigo, who scowls at his father. Ichigo has not told his father about his plan to propose, and so he hadn't been able to tell him about his visit to Soul Society, where he'd gotten held up and not made it home in time for dinner.

Ichigo grabs Rukia's hand and pulls her upstairs, and Isshin crosses his arms and smiles. He's not stupid, he knows something is in the air. He wonders if Ichigo is actually going to ask Rukia-chan to marry him, and if he does, Isshin will do a double flip off of the roof in happiness.

_Later…_

"I love fireworks! What a fantastic idea, thank you for taking me here!" Rukia says as she and Ichigo stand alone on the roof of a building to watch the spectacular display of fireworks being shot off. Ichigo grins. He hasn't ever heard of a girl that didn't like watching fireworks.

"When I was waiting for you to get back from hanging out with Hanatarou, I noticed that they had fireworks tonight. I knew I wanted to take you to see them," Ichigo tells her with a sideways smile. He sticks his hand in his pocket and begins to turn the box nervously in his hand.

He isn't afraid she'll turn him down, but that doesn't make the question any less scary. He is glad that the fireworks are going on, giving him a reason to look up rather than have to look at her as his heart pounds in anticipation.

"Ooh! Look Ichigo, the grand finale is starting!" Rukia says excitedly, and Ichigo takes a gulp of breath.

_This is it._

"Rukia…" Ichigo says, as he drops on one knee. Rukia glances up and realizes he's not standing anymore. Her eyes widen as she looks at Ichigo on one knee in front of her, she forgets all about the fireworks as he works the box out of his pocket.

"Ichigo?" Rukia breathes as she stares wide eyed at him.

"Rukia, the past year has been perfect, and I want the rest of my life to be this perfect. It can only happen with you at my side. Will you marry me?" Ichigo asks her as he opens the box, to present the ring.

Fireworks are exploding all around in the background, but Rukia's attention is on the beautiful ring he has just presented to her. It's exactly the type of ring Rukia can imagine on her finger. It's not overly large, nor is it really small. It's a medium sized circular diamond with tiny sapphire studs surrounding it. The gold of the band is sparkling even though it's dark outside.

"Yes, I'll marry you, Ichigo!" Rukia says with a big excited smile, even as a tear comes popping out of her eye.

Ichigo catches her left hand and uses one his other hand to pull the ring out of the box. He slips it on her finger and then he uses his finger to wipe that tear away from her smiling face. He pulls her gently down to kiss him, and when they pull away, they get to see the end of the fireworks finale.

"I promised your brother, and I'll make the same promise to you, that I will always love you and protect you, with the same dedication that I had, when I saved your life in Soul Society. I will do everything in my power to make you happy." Ichigo tells her solemnly.

Rukia looks at the ring on her finger and she smiles happily. Ichigo stands up, and Rukia looks up at him, with her eyes sparkling like the jewel on her finger.

"I'll never stop loving you, as long as you keep that promise." Rukia whispers up to him, and Ichigo grins.

"I'm a man of my word." Ichigo assures her, and Rukia smiles at his response. She already knew that about him, which is why his promise made her so happy.

They stay on the roof, cuddling for quite awhile in happiness, and both of them imagine their future together. Rukia finds that she just can't seem to stop smiling.

_Later…_

When Ichigo and Rukia arrive home, Isshin notices Rukia's ring right away. He grabs them both for a hug and shouts at the top of his lungs.

"Finally! Rukia-chan really will be my third daughter!" Isshin's voice echoes around the neighborhood, but Ichigo just smiles. He wonders if his father's yelling woke his sisters up.

Isshin races up the stairs and before they know it, they hear him screaming outside. He's landed on his ass. Rukia and Ichigo dash outside.

"What the hell?" Ichigo asks, as his father rubs his rear.

"I made a decision to do a double flip off the roof if you actually proposed to her. I feel much better now." Isshin says, even as he grimaces from the pain in his ass. Rukia just stands there and laughs at the situation, and when Ichigo turns to look at her, he can tell how very happy she is to be here with him.

_Now, life is perfect._


	104. As Requested: Ichigo's Protection 2

**A/N-I was really surprised when I got the request to do a continuation to chapter 9, Ichigo's Protection, but I was also happy since it was one of my earlier chapters, so here it is. It's dedicated to the person who requested it, please enjoy!**

_Ichigo's Protection 2_

"Urahara!" Rukia and Ichigo stomp into his store with angry looks on their faces. Their scowls mirror one another and Urahara's eyes widen at the sight of their united front.

"Kuchiki-san! Kurosaki-san!" Urahara says in a sing song voice. He's unprepared for them both taking a swing on him at the same time. He flies to the ground and lands on his back, even as he lets out a small groan of pain.

"Damn it, Urahara!" Rukia snaps angrily.

"Is there something I can do for you?" Urahara asks carefully, as he stares at their outraged faces. Rukia pulls out her memory modifier, and she shoves it in his face.

"How about not selling me defective items that only work about half the time!" Rukia snaps at him. Urahara looks confused.

"The modifiers are only working about half the time now? I noticed that they were getting less effective here in Karakura Town. This seems to be the only place that's currently affected to the point where even the modifiers aren't properly working. What happened?" Urahara asks.

"Ichigo was suspended for three days. We tried to modify the memories of everyone so that we could return to school without his reason for suspension being remembered, but it didn't work!" Rukia growls at him.

"Do you have any idea how difficult it was to explain to Tatsuki why Rukia just blasted a puff of pink smoke in her face?" Ichigo demands next.

"Calm down, both of you!" I was aware of the growing problem, which is why a newer and more developed memory modifier is in the works. You do realize that this was never a problem before you became a Shinigami, don't you?" Urahara asks Ichigo pointedly.

"I can hardly believe his reiatsu has affected such a large amount of people," Rukia says with a big sigh.

"You need to quit blaming me." Ichigo grumbles at Urahara, who raises an eyebrow at him.

"I'm just calling it as I see it." Urahara says defensively.

"So how long until the newer modifier is completed?" Rukia asks Urahara curiously.

"I don't have an estimated time of completion, I'm sorry. I started to work on this problem a long time ago, to be honest. It's difficult to create a product that will only work on the recipient, being so strong, it could affect the Shinigami who is using it, which is why I've been having trouble." Urahara admits.

"Great." Rukia mutters with aggravation.

"Why did you get suspended, Kurosaki-san?" Urahara asks with a grin playing at his lips. He'd already heard the story from Isshin, but Ichigo has no idea that Urahara and Isshin speak to one another.

"A human in school grabbed my arm at the beginning of this week," Rukia says, and she pushes up her sleeve to show him the fading bruises.

"So why did you get suspended?" Urahara asks Ichigo, who refuses to meet his eyes.

"I broke the kid's arm." Ichigo admits, even though his embarrassment is obvious.

"Ah, young love." Urahara says, causing both Rukia and Ichigo to blush furiously.

"Shut up." Ichigo says, though his voice doesn't sound nearly as strong as usual.

"So why isn't anyone allowed to remember this?" Urahara asks in confusion.

"It makes the mission more difficult when we are constantly having to answer a zillion questions." Rukia answers lamely. Urahara rolls his eyes at them.

"That's a pretty weak reason to come in here as angry as you did." He informs them, and Rukia glares at him.

"If it doesn't work for this, it's not going to work when those more important times come up either!" Rukia says, wishing he'd not pointed out how much they shouldn't have been using the device in their current situation. "Plus, you're hardly one to talk! During that drop in show, you freely used those tools on the security guards, in front of a huge crowd of people!" Rukia finishes. Urahara bows his head.

"Touché. Still, is it so bad that people know that if they mess with you, they're messing with Kurosaki-san too?" Urahara asks. Rukia turns a bit pink, and Ichigo smiles for a second, until he realizes it, and he pushes the corners of his mouth down.

"Call me when you finish the new product," Rukia tells him, though her embarrassment is clear in her voice.

"Will do." Urahara says, as he tips his hat. Ichigo shoots him one last glare, and then turns to walk out of the store with Rukia.

When they reach Ichigo's house, they find Sado out front, waiting for them to return home.

"Sado!" Rukia says with a grin.

"Hi." Sado says to Rukia, before he turns to Ichigo. "What did you two do to Tatsuki?" Sado gets right to the point. Rukia and Ichigo both groan in unison.

"What did you hear?" Ichigo asks, with dread in his voice.

"She thinks Kuchiki is crazy now." Sado informs them, and Ichigo grins, while Rukia groans again.

"Well, she's not too far off from the truth there," Ichigo says, still smiling, until Rukia punches him in the chin.

"Shut up." Rukia says, and Sado sweats a bit at that. Ichigo rubs his chin.

"Damn, that hurt Rukia!" Ichigo sputters.

"So what happened?" Sado asks again. Rukia sighs.

"I tried to modify her memory…but she has too much reiatsu for it to work." Rukia admits, and Sado's eyes widen.

"How did you explain that one away?" Sado asks in a bit of shock.

"She told Tatsuki that it was a special smoke that cleans all of the impurities from your face. Do you have any idea how strangely Tatsuki looked at her after that explanation?" Ichigo asks, as he crosses his arms.

"That was your excuse?" Sado asks in disbelief.

"Tatsuki didn't buy it either, but Rukia wouldn't budge. I finally had to interject, and tell Rukia that she had been gypped, and Tatsuki agreed to that instantly." Ichigo says as he shakes his head.

"If I would have budged, then she would know my original reason was a lie. I had to stick to my story." Rukia argues, and Ichigo shakes his head.

"You know Ooshima is back in school tomorrow, don't you?" Sado asks Ichigo, who just scowls.

"What can he do with a broken arm?" Ichigo asks with an unconcerned wave of his hand, before he goes back to his crossed arms stance.

"I just wanted to warn you." Sado says, before he starts to walk off the porch.

Rukia and Ichigo exchange a glance, and then quickly both look away. Ever since he had broken that asshole's arm, all Rukia's been able to think about, is how nice it would be if Ichigo were her real boyfriend. All Ichigo has been able to think about, is how he always wants to look out for her, and have her depend on him.

They say nothing about these feelings to one another as they enter the house, and they don't speak about anything deep or private for the rest of the evening.

_The next day…_

When Ichigo and Rukia arrive at school, everything seems totally normal. They both sigh in relief as they head for the classroom. On the way, they're about to pass by Ooshima who is sporting a cast, and they hear someone ask him how his arm got broken. Apparently not everyone knew the story, like they thought.

"I grabbed Kurosaki's girlfriend, so he freaked out and broke my arm. He's lucky I didn't expect it, or I would have given him two black eyes before he could lay a hand on me." Ooshima responds, and Rukia turns bright red at being referred to as Ichigo's girlfriend.

Ichigo is seeing red, since that dick seems to think he can beat him.

"You pussy ass bitch, I'll take you anytime, anywhere. I don't even mind waiting for your arm to heal." Ichigo says rather loudly.

"Acting tough for your girlfriend?" Ooshima sneers and Ichigo begins to lunge, only to be held back by Rukia.

"Wait until his arm is healed Ichigo! It would be too easy right now! Even your sister could kick his ass in his current condition!" Rukia belts out, and the crowd of people around all start to laugh.

For one thing, nobody expected that the tiny girl that accompanies Ichigo could actually hold him back, and her comment about his sister being able to take Ooshima hit a funny bone for many of the students too.

Ooshima turns red in anger at Rukia's words.

"You fucking bitch! You wait until I catch you alone!" Ooshima threatens her, and Rukia lets go of Ichigo, who is still struggling to get to Ooshima. Within a moment, Ichigo slams the kid's head into the wall and he crumples to the ground, unconscious.

"Bitch ass." Ichigo growls as he and Rukia head towards the class.

"I shouldn't have let you go." Rukia mutters as she imagines Ichigo getting expelled.

"You know you wanted me to do worse than that to him." Ichigo tells her with a sideways glance.

"That's true, but now you'll get in trouble again!" Rukia tells him worriedly.

"Nah, the modifier still works on the principal. I'm counting on you to keep me out of trouble, Rukia." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia smiles softly at that.

Neither one of them bring up the girlfriend comments, but they are both secretly happy that neither one had denied that statement. Rukia's smile is radiant as she enters the classroom and sits down to think before the sensei walks in.

_Slowly and surely we keep getting closer and closer. You even kick ass for me. You're the best, Ichigo!_


	105. As Requested: Snow Angel

**A/N- I had a request to continue on the series that started at chapter 88, continued on 92, and then 102. It's dedicated to the one that requested it, please enjoy!**

_Snow Angel_

Ichigo scowls once again, because Rukia wants to practice with her bankai. He has so far refused to fight with her, since he doesn't want to get avalanched by her. He also doesn't want to get buried alive, stuck in a mountain of ice, or be speared with her ice rods.

She has been getting more and more insistent that he be her training partner, but Ichigo has told her more than once that he thinks she's best off training with Sode No Shirayuki. It's not like she isn't an amazing training partner, plus she can help Rukia develop her bankai better.

Ichigo waits for her to come back to his bedroom, so they can hop out the window and head for Urahara's place, and train there again. He's been watching her train a lot lately, and had not really been participating very much.

When Rukia enters his room, she grins at him and then she heads for the window. Ichigo follows after her and they quickly head to Urahara's place.

"Today you'll train with me, right?" Rukia asks him, and Ichigo sighs.

"No." Ichigo says bluntly, and Rukia elbows him in the side. Ichigo shoots a glare at her.

"Then we won't do what you want to do tonight," Rukia tells him as she frowns at him, and Ichigo's eyes widen.

"You wouldn't!" Ichigo sputters. He can hardly believe she's going to blackmail him into doing something that he just doesn't want to do.

"I so would." Rukia tells him with a smirk.

If there is one thing he can never get bored of, it's his nights with Rukia. He grumbles as they get closer to the Urahara store. Rukia can sense that he's trying to stay stubborn, but she had definitely nailed his weak spot, no pun intended. She tries not to smile, since she knows she's already won the battle of getting him to train with her.

"You had better not kill me with your bankai." Ichigo growls at her, even as he feels like it's unfair. It's not like he could ever send a slash attack in her direction. He'd rip off his own arm before he'd ever risk hurting her.

"Ichigo it's about technique, not death. In practice I will never go that far." Rukia assures him, and Ichigo doesn't feel very reassured. She isn't the one who faces being buried in an avalanche though, so maybe it's to be expected.

"You'd better make this up to me later." Ichigo grumbles next, and Rukia grins as she looks up at him.

Her eyes seem to be giving him the promise of something wonderful later on, and Ichigo feels his irritation fade away. She has the ability to make him feel so much, so strongly, and then make everything okay.

"Don't worry, maybe you'll enjoy yourself so much that you'll be volunteering to train with me." Rukia says with a wink, but Ichigo doubts it. He doesn't relish the idea of facing her bankai, one bit.

When they finally arrive at the store, Rukia hurries to the underground chamber, and Ichigo follows her. Once they're down there, they get into soul form, and then they face each other before they start.

Rukia releases Sode No Shirayuki immediately, since her sealed zanpakutou can't even help her against his full time released Zangetsu.

They clash in shikai mode for nearly twenty minutes before Rukia decides to move on to bankai.

"Bankai! The Waltz of the Snow Angel, Sode No Shirayuki!" Rukia calls out.

"Bankai! Tensa Zangetsu!" Ichigo says as he immediately begins to move. has had time to develop a strategy for not getting his ass kicked by her bankai. He'll simply be on the run.

Rukia always looks amazing when she's in bankai, and they make a beautiful pair in bankai together. Rukia sends the avalanche after him, and Ichigo starts to fly at top speed around the underground chamber.

Rukia is surprised that he's able to stay ahead of her attacks, even if he isn't directly attacking her back.

Rukia starts to feel frustration when she hasn't even touched him after five minutes of challenging him in bankai, and she concentrates on making her avalanche move even faster.

Ichigo's eyes widen when he realizes he's going to have to pick up his already amazing pace, since she's slowly moving her avalanche faster and faster to try and match his movements.

"Third Dance, White Blade!" Rukia suddenly calls out and Ichigo barely dodges a couple of ice rods that nearly pierce his skin.

"You won't be satisfied until I'm bleeding will you?" Ichigo shouts at her as he moves even faster. Rukia lets out a moan of aggravation. He's moving so quickly, that she swears she can see him in eight different places at once.

She sends her avalanche from different directions, but Ichigo flies up into the air and dodges her attacks.

As Ichigo runs from her, he realizes just how difficult it is to try to get close to her, strictly from a fighting point of view. If she really were an enemy, he has a feeling he'd be doing a lot of running in that situation as well.

"Are you running away from me?" Rukia shouts angrily as she sends tons of snow flying in his direction.

"Definitely!" Ichigo shouts back, and Rukia scowls.

As much as it bugs her that she hasn't touched him, she also realizes the value of this training. She is sure that nobody is faster than her Ichigo, and so if she can ever catch him, she will feel much more confident about catching other opponents.

It would be shameful if this was a real battle since she hasn't touched him once.

Neither one of them realize how quickly time passes as Rukia tries harder and harder to catch Ichigo, and he works with all of his might to keep her from catching him.

They're finally forced to stop when Urahara calls down that it's almost seven o'clock. Ichigo zooms up to Rukia and plants a big kiss on her lips after Urahara's announcement, and Rukia can't help but smile at that.

They hurry to head home, in order to avoid Isshin's punishment, and on the way, Rukia smiles up at Ichigo and grabs his hand.

"Thank you for participating," Rukia tells him softly.

"You're scary in bankai." Ichigo tells her, even as he feels the pain from being on the run for hours on end from her.

"Don't kid with me, I didn't even touch you," Rukia says with a little depression sounding in her voice. Ichigo grins down at her.

"I didn't touch you either." Ichigo points out, and Rukia scoffs at him.

"You didn't even try." Rukia says with a pout.

"Rukia you came very close to getting me, and you're still learning your bankai. The truth is that I was analyzing your bankai and what the fight would be like if you were really an enemy, and even then, I doubt I'd be doing much besides running from that colossal avalanche of yours." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia smiles at that.

"You're just saying that," Rukia says, with pink cheeks, since his words please her very much.

"No, I mean it." Ichigo tells her as he gives her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"It was actually very helpful to practice with you, and getting the hang of moving my dances and avalanche much faster than what I had to with Sode No Shirayuki." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo is glad to hear it.

"If practicing with you will make it more likely for you to achieve success in the future then I won't argue anymore. I'll happily participate if it makes you happy, even if you end up killing me," Ichigo says, even as a disturbed look crosses his face, and Rukia laughs.

"It means a lot to me that you would say that. I'm definitely going to reward you tonight." Rukia tells him. Ichigo feels his face heat up.

_That night…_

Ichigo is laying on his bed with his eyes closed when Rukia slips silently in the room. She tiptoes over to his bed and then sits down, causing him to open his eyes instantly. He grins at her and then she starts to unbutton his pants.

Ichigo's eyes widen as Rukia leans over to pleasure him with her mouth and he lets out a long moan as she quickly has him feeling hornier than hell.

Ichigo waits until she pulls away, and then he smiles at her.

"My turn." Ichigo says huskily and he returns the favor, pleasuring her with his mouth.

After they've made passionate love, Ichigo hugs Rukia a bit tighter in his arms.

"I'll practice anytime you want to." Ichigo solemnly vows, and Rukia giggles at that.

"And to think I had to practically twist your arm to get you to participate!" Rukia says happily.

"The benefits outweigh the risks. You're definitely something else." Ichigo says in an awed type of voice. Rukia's used to it now. He always has such praise for her after they make love.

"With both of us being so strong…we have a better chance for a long and happy future," Rukia tells him with a feminine yawn.

Ichigo closes his eyes and breathes in her scent. He had never realized it until tonight, but he loves the smell of wintertime, and that's exactly what her scent reminds him of.

_Her bankai is named just right. Rukia is my snow angel._


	106. As Requested: Ichigo's Kidou 2

**A/N-I had a couple of requests to do a continuation on Ichigo's Kidou, where Rukia finally shows him a destructive spell. I hope you enjoy it!**

_Ichigo's Kidou 2_

"How in the hell did you convince me to let you do this?" Rukia asks as she dreads what his first destructive spell will be like.

She knows exactly how. He threatened to bind her to him again in bed if she didn't teach him one destructive spell, and Rukia had to give in, since she knew he'd follow through.

"It will be okay, Rukia. We're nowhere near any other living person." Ichigo says, and Rukia looks around at the romantic scenery of the mountain that they have decided to visit for this lesson.

"If this ends up anything like your binding spells, then I can't be so certain that everything will be okay." Rukia says in a tight voice.

"Stop worrying so much. Which destructive spell will you teach me?" Ichigo asks, with his face lighting up in excitement. He looks like a little kid that just received a carload of presents.

"How about I show you what it should look like before you attempt it, then you can see just how much you tend to naturally go overboard with your power." Rukia explains.

"Okay," Ichigo tells her, and Rukia takes a stance. She looks towards the top of the mountain.

"Destructive Art, Number Four! White Lightening!" Rukia chants, and Ichigo watches, impressed at how she sends a powerful attack towards the top of the mountain and destroys the land where her spell hits.

"That's cool. Now I guess that I should try it." Ichigo says as he concentrates. Rukia takes a couple of steps back and then decides to stand directly behind him.

"This is pure insanity," Rukia mutters under her breath, and luckily, Ichigo is too concentrated on his spell to be paying attention to her grumblings.

"Destructive Art, Number Four! White Lightening!" Ichigo shouts.

A flash of light, unlike any that Rukia has ever seen, blinds her for a moment, and then the sound of a massive explosion rocks the entire mountain, and it feels like an earthquake. Rukia grabs a hold of Ichigo's robes to keep from falling down as the mountain shakes and shudders.

"What in the fuck did you do?!" Rukia shouts at the top of her lungs as she peeks around his front. Her mouth drops open.

"Shit." Ichigo says, with dread sounding in his voice. Rukia can only breathe as she looks around.

They had been about three quarters of the way up this mountain before Ichigo's spell, and now they stand on the top of it after Ichigo's spell.

"Ichigo! You blew away a quarter of the mountain!" Rukia's voice sounds strained as she surveys the destruction.

Dust and bits of dirt are still flying around, but it's clear that he has blown away the top of the mountain, completely.

"Whoops," Ichigo says, as his face turns white. Rukia's hands go to her hips as she glares at him.

"Whoops?! Is that all you have to say after causing a catastrophe like this?" Rukia asks with a disbelieving shake of her head.

"What am I supposed to say?" Ichigo asks her even though he realizes she has good reason to be freaking out.

"Say that you will never attempt to use any destructive arts like that ever again!" Rukia shouts as she shakes a fist at him.

"I won't ever learn if I don't practice though," Ichigo argues and Rukia punches him in the chin.

"If you keep practicing, you'll obliterate what's left of Japan!" Rukia's voice is actually shrill. She cannot believe he just wiped out the top of the mountain.

The dust begins to get in her mouth and nose, and so Rukia jumps high into the air and starts to work her way down the mountain. Ichigo follows after her, and they realize that people are at the bottom of the mountain, staring up and pointing.

"Rukia…maybe we shouldn't watch the news tonight," Ichigo says next to her, as they keep moving towards Karakura Town.

"Why not? It's not like this is the first time your kidou has been newsworthy." Rukia snaps at him, and Ichigo looks downwards. Obviously, he shouldn't have blown up the mountain, but it wasn't like he had intended to do that, it just was the result of his spell.

"Why do you have to be so pissed off?" Ichigo asks her, since she's making him feel bad. Rukia stops and Ichigo stops with her. She glares up into his eyes with a very angry expression.

"You should just keep swinging your sword. Let me handle the kidou aspect of things. You go way too far. Don't you finally realize it? Didn't I show you how the spell was supposed to work? Why don't you see how dangerous you are?" Rukia responds, and Ichigo sighs.

"You're the one who always wants to split up when multiple enemies show up, and I thought it would be a good thing to learn more, and be a more well rounded Shinigami." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia just sighs.

"Well then, let me ask you this. What will you do, if you chant a destructive spell in the middle of a fight, and end up killing humans because of your inability to control yourself? How would that make you feel?" Rukia asks him, and Ichigo gets an intense expression on his face as he comes to the realization that it would eat away at him if his spell killed innocent bystanders.

"Shitty." Ichigo admits, and Rukia sighs again.

"I don't think you could get over something like that. I'd rather yell at you now, then to watch you be in pain, over a misuse of your powers." Rukia tells him.

"You're right, Rukia." Ichigo says, before his face suddenly lights up. "You know what I want to do?" Ichigo asks her with a sudden grin, which Rukia is taken aback by.

"What?" Rukia asks, hoping he won't say anything kidou related.

Ichigo shocks her when he grabs her up and kisses her. Rukia certainly didn't expect it, but then he sets her down after he kisses the anger all out of her.

"I want to bind you in my bed again," Ichigo says in a sensual voice, and Rukia forgets all of her previous anger. She tries to keep herself from smiling, but it's impossible.

"You don't need to bind me, to get me into your bed." Rukia informs him, and Ichigo smiles.

"And you don't have to worry, I won't use any kidou here on earth, at least not until I figure out how to control everything." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia finds that she can't stop smiling now.

"You just leave the kidou to me," Rukia tells him with a grin.

"Only if you promise to keep sleeping with me…" Ichigo tells her, and Rukia blushes.

"Always." Rukia whispers, and Ichigo pulls her into his arms.

_I guess getting closer through kidou practice really did work. I got what I wanted, even if you forbid me from using the kidou._


	107. As Requested: Ichigo's Protection 3

**A/N-I was asked to put out a third chapter to Ichigo's Protection, and so here it is, it's dedicated to the one that requested it. I hope you enjoy it! **

_Ichigo's Protection 3 _

Rukia and Ichigo both have pretty much forgotten the Ooshima incident. They're back in their usual groove of killing hollows, and they've somehow managed to avoid getting into an in depth discussion on their feelings for one another.

Ichigo and Rukia both are quite aware that their feelings extend beyond that of nakama, but neither of them will admit that out loud. Ichigo is uncomfortable of bringing up, even though he hasn't once denied the accusation that she's his girlfriend, not since the day he'd broken Ooshima's arm. He has also noticed, with silent glee, that she hasn't denied the accusation either.

So, they just keep living their lives, the same as always, and after the incident in the hallway when Ichigo had attacked Ooshima a second time, the foul kid had apparently decided to leave them alone. Or so they thought.

Ooshima ended up having to spend eight weeks in a cast, due to how violently Ichigo had broken his arm. After Ichigo attacked him the second time in the hallway, Ooshima's focus shifted off of Kurosaki, and onto the tiny dark haired girl that Kurosaki always kept near him.

At first, Ooshima thought he was watching her, just so that he could have an opportunity to scare the daylights out of her. Also, to figure out when she wasn't around Kurosaki, so that he could confront her, without the orange haired devil butting his nose in.

As the weeks went by, he realized that even though he can't stand her personality, he really wants to touch her. He can just imagine forcing her down to the ground, preventing her from escaping, and letting his hands have free reign over her body.

Once he acknowledged his attraction for her, he started to plot and plan, and stalk her. Ooshima had been very disappointed to learn that a life tragedy forced her to move into Kurosaki's house, which would just make it harder for him to ever get his hands on her, but by the sixth week in his cast, he's completely obsessed.

All he can think about is making her cry and submit to him, no matter how unwilling she may be. Ooshima began making plans, for the week his cast came off, and he already arranged for a trusted buddy of his to distract Kurosaki, so that Ooshima can slip the girl right out from under Kurosaki's nose.

He has arranged for a second buddy to keep a lookout, while he drags Kuchiki Rukia into the storage shed outside of the school. He wants to get her at lunch, and he has even been considering tying her up in there, and keeping her there for several days, maybe longer.

Then, he can touch her as much as he desires. The fact that she's Kurosaki's girlfriend, just makes it that much sweeter, and he can practically taste victory as he plans his strategy.

Ooshima works on this plan much harder than he ever has with any of his school work or good deeds. After all, he had just over seven weeks to think about it all, and he figures she owes him for the broken arm. She owes him, and owes him, and owes him again.

He also figures that this is a good way to pay Kurosaki back for his own humiliation. He wonders if Kurosaki loves this girl enough, to let something like this break him. Ooshima gets giddy at the very prospect of such a thing.

When his cast comes off, Ooshima is disappointed that though his arm is repaired, it's not nearly as strong as it used to be, and he finally decides that he'll have to carry a knife on him to keep her from struggling with him, since he only has one strong arm.

The day finally comes when he's ready to take action, and he makes sure his friends know, that the time has officially come. His plan seems fool proof to them. His friend doing the distraction, is really going out on a limb, because his technique for distracting Kurosaki is to tap him on the shoulder, and then deck him in the face, the instant he turns around.

They had even planned the spot, right at the corner of the school. Ooshima hides behind some shrubs, and waits for the altercation to begin. At first, everything goes according to plan. His buddy punches Kurosaki, and a scuffles immediately ensues. The girl just crosses her arms and waits for the guys to finish their brawl, and Ooshima is able to sneak right up on her.

Rukia's eyes widen in pure shock when someone grabs her from behind and covers her mouth with one hand and holds a small blade against her neck with the other. Ichigo is still involved in the fight, and doesn't even see what's going on. She has no idea who just grabbed her, but she lets him take her away, because whoever it is, she's going to beat them senseless, the first chance she gets once there are no witnesses.

Her chance comes when the guy removes his hand to open the door to the storage shed. The buddy keeping lookout, isn't watching them, he's keeping an eye out mainly for Kurosaki or one of his buddies.

"Way of Binding, Number One! Paralysis!" Rukia quickly commands, and Ooshima's eyes widen as he pitches to the ground.

From there, Rukia drags him into the shed and she looks down at him with menacing eyes. He looks terrified and he just stares at her.

"Bitch! What in the hell did you do to me?!" Ooshima shrieks and Rukia crosses her arms.

"You can't move. I'm trying to decide whether or not you even deserve to live. Although I'm typically forbidden to kill humans that I'm not ordered to, I'm thinking I might be able to make you an exception to that rule." Rukia says, and Ooshima looks at her with a mixture of confusion, disbelief, and terror.

"You say that like you're not human..." Ooshima says nervously, and Rukia gives him a taunting smirk.

"After the way I just prevented you from moving...you still think me human?" Rukia asks him with a raised eyebrow, and Ooshima just stares at her.

"You don't look like anything else." Ooshima says, trying to keep his voice steady. It's difficult when his body feels like it's invisibly bound though.

"Exactly what was your plan, when you decided to drag me in here? Care to enlighten me, you jackass?" Rukia asks in a snippy tone, and Ooshima starts to sweat.

Rukia kicks him hard in the stomach when he takes too long to answer.

"Bitch!" Ooshima snarls, and Rukia kicks him again.

"Go ahead and tell me. Tell me exactly what your big plan was, if you hadn't been rendered unable to move, by me. I'm just so curious to know, and I'm going to kick you until I get a response." Rukia informs him before she aims another hard kick in his gut.

Her foot ricochets off of his stomach and grazes him in the groin, causing him to squeal like a girl from the pain.

"Stop it!" Ooshima yells, and then he remembers he has a friend nearby. "Yo! Get over here Satou! Help me!" Ooshima keeps expecting his buddy Satou to bust in the shed to help him, but what happens is totally different.

Instead, it's Kurosaki who walks in, dragging Satou by the collar of his shirt. Ichigo looks completely relieved to see that Rukia is perfectly fine, until he notices Ooshima in a familiar looking position. He gives Rukia a look of concern, since he knows she wouldn't do this to someone without a good reason, and his heart pounds when he considers what the reason may be.

"Rukia, when I finished beating up that son of a bitch, I realized you were gone. I started to follow your reiatsu, and then this jerk here attacked me." Ichigo says, motioning towards the unconscious kid that he's dragged in.

Ichigo doesn't mention that the jerk he dragged in with him admitted Ooshima's plans to him already, because if she doesn't know what he was going to do, it's best she stay in the dark about it.

"This guy here wanted to drag me into this shed, and even went so far as to put a knife to my neck." Rukia tells Ichigo, and his face shows his complete fury upon hearing that a knife had been to Rukia's neck.

"So you used the binding arts on him? I think we should kill him. Three strikes and he's out." Ichigo says in an unforgiving tone as he glares at Ooshima.

"We shouldn't kill him, but I will do this." Rukia says as she eats a gikongan. Ooshima doesn't see what happens, but neither Kurosaki or Kuchiki step closer to him, and so it's a complete shock when it feels like his legs have been cut and blood starts to spray out.

"Nice one, Rukia." Ichigo says as she cuts the tendons and nerves in his legs so badly that he'll need physical therapy, and a strong will to ever be able to walk again. She undoes her binding spell and she gets back into her gigai.

"Come on Ichigo, maybe next time he'll think twice about who he's targeting." Rukia says with a sigh, but suddenly Ichigo is furious again.

"Go on without me, Rukia. I have one thing I want to say to Ooshima in private." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia nods her head. She steps outside the shed door, but she doesn't leave. She suppresses her reiatsu to make it seem like she's walking away.

"What do you want, Kurosaki?" Ooshima's voice sounds frightened, and Rukia listens with curiosity.

"That's my line,_ you sick fuck_. What were you going to do to Rukia if she hadn't stopped you?" Ichigo inquires as Ooshima's legs continue to bleed. Ichigo is tempted to not even call this jerk an ambulance and just let him bleed to death.

"Nothing! I just wanted to scare her a little..." Ooshima lies, but Ichigo seems to be aware of what Ooshima's true intentions were.

"Funny, because your buddy here sold you out. It was to try to keep me from continuing to punch the shit out of him, I punched him one more time anyways, but I already know what you had in mind. Just so you know...you're going to pay for even _thinking_ about doing that to Rukia." Ichigo's voice is loud and clear, and Rukia listens as Ooshima starts to cry like a baby as it sounds like Ichigo is beating the living crap out of the guy.

He uses a cell phone of one of the boys to call for an ambulance before he walks out of the shed. When Ichigo storms out of the shed, his eyes widen when he sees Rukia standing there and grinning at him, and he feels mighty embarrassed.

"Ichigo?" Rukia asks as she falls into step next to him, while they head back to class.

"What?" Ichigo asks, wondering what all she heard.

_All of it, I bet. Damn._

"What were his true plans?" Rukia asks, since she had been wondering that in the first place. They head inside the school and begin to hurry towards class when they realize the bell is about to ring.

"He wanted to violate you." Ichigo answers, and Rukia turns bright red.

"You mean he wanted to-" Rukia starts to ask, and Ichigo cuts her off.

"Yes, don't even say it or I'll lose my temper again," Ichigo says in a low angry voice. Rukia can't help but to feel happy that he is that protective and angry, when it comes to someone wanting to violate her.

"Ichigo?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo sighs.

"What?" Ichigo asks, and he quickens his pace since they're almost to the classroom.

A moment later he realizes he should have slowed down, because Rukia asks the question as they enter the doorway, and the class was just about to start so it was completely silent when she spoke.

"Would you consider it a violation if I joined you in your bed, completely naked tonight?" Rukia asks, and everybody in the classroom gawks, since they all heard Rukia loud and clear. Even the teacher is gawking, and Rukia suddenly notices that everyone's complete attention is on her. Ichigo and Rukia both turn a dark shade of red.

"Well Kurosaki, answer her," The teacher says with her eyes all wide in shock, even as an amused smile plays at her face.

"Ha ha, very funny Rukia," Ichigo says, even though he can feel the heat is still in his face. Rukia swallows nervously and they hurry to their seats.

Rukia doesn't meet anybody's eyes for the rest of class, and she's sure that Ichigo is mad at her as they walk home. She finally feels like she should say something.

"Sorry, Ichigo." Rukia apologizes for embarrassing them both after lunch.

"I never answered your question." Ichigo says in response, though he doesn't meet her eyes.

"My question?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo blushes a little bit.

"I could never accuse you of violating me, anything you would do, I would like...unless you left me." Ichigo admits, and Rukia smiles a smile that doesn't leave her face the whole way home.

"Then tonight...I'll meet you in bed." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo's eyes widen in shock and anticipation. He doesn't tell her what he's thinking.

_I can't wait...violate me all you want Rukia, I'll love it. _


	108. As Requested: Rukia's Coma

_**A/N-I had a request to do a coma story with Rukia being the one who's in the coma, instead of Ichigo, like in chapter 29. This is dedicated to the person that requested it, and also to LithiumRukia, for allowing me to play off of one of her ideas for the ending :) She's a great IchiRuki author if you haven't read her work, check it out! Please enjoy!**_

_Rukia's Coma_

_Ichigo's Hell…_

Ichigo threatened anybody who dared to tell him to leave with a quick and painless death if they didn't leave him the hell alone. Unohana hasn't picked any kind of fight with him, nor have any of the other Fourth Division members.

The whole thing is still hard for Ichigo to take in. He closes his eyes and remembers in detail how it all happened, for what must be the hundredth time.

_Flashback_

Rukia had been backing Ichigo up, as he fought with Aizen, while Gin and Tousen hung back for the time being. Everyone else was involved in battles with powerful Espada, or Arrancar, but the two of them were tag teaming together on Aizen.

The infuriating thing was that Aizen kept blocking their attacks so easily, he was acting like he were an adult fighting with two toddlers.

Rukia was cussing Aizen out at the top of her lungs, making Ichigo proud, and something she said, pricked his temper, though Ichigo wasn't sure what. Her exact tirade had been magnificent though.

"_Aizen, you treacherous piece of shit! You aren't nearly as great as you say you are, don't think that anybody thinks you're worthy enough to go to the King's dimension! Even if you miraculously made the key, you'd get killed like a bug the moment you tried to enter. Your power is nothing compared to that held in the Royal dimension!" _

Aizen went right at her at top speed, with his eyes glinting from the anger she caused him.

"I'll just put you out of your misery now, big mouth!" Aizen said under his breath, as he flew at her.

Ichigo was there in time, to meet Aizen's blade with his own.

"You aren't touching her." Ichigo said to Aizen, with his hollow sounding voice.

Aizen's eyes had narrowed, since he really wanted to shut Rukia up. She's got too foul a mouth for his liking, not to mention she was being disrespectful of the next ruler.

That was when it happened. Out of nowhere, Tousen appeared right behind Rukia and held his zanpakutou, to her neck. Ichigo's eyes had widened in fear and he quickly used his Getsuga Tenshou on Aizen, but the mother fucker cut right through it. Aizen swung his blade again, and Ichigo met it with his own, even though his eyes are only on Rukia.

"For disrespecting Aizen-sama, you will suffer the same fate that I myself had to go through. I know how hard it is, to lose the woman you love. Say goodbye, Kurosaki Ichigo." Tousen said, and Ichigo met Rukia's eyes with a look of panic.

She met his eyes too, and it looked to Ichigo like she was accepting her death.

The moment the blood started to flood out of Rukia's neck, Ichigo laid an attack unlike any other that he'd ever fired off before, at Aizen. Three captains flew in, having finished their battles to take on Aizen, while Ichigo turned his head back to Rukia, in time to see the most disturbing sight of his life.

It was worse than the day when he met her, and she got bitten by that damned hollow, trying to save him. Tousen has Byakuya's zanpakutou, sticking out of the front of his chest, but Tousen had managed to slice his blade halfway through Rukia's neck.

"Rukia!" Ichigo had let out a roar of anguish, pain, and devastating loss.

_End Flashback_

Ichigo doesn't remember much after that, but he was told that he went completely ballistic. Apparently he began to pour out reiatsu, as though he were going to go into some sort of freaky third release, never before seen by Soul Society, but Byakuya had been close enough to hear Ichigo's voice.

_As soon as you fuckers die, I have nothing left to live for. I won't hold back._

Ichigo had been a bit annoyed when Byakuya confronted him. Ichigo told him to get out of his face or die.

Ichigo had used all of the reiatsu that he possessed to let off a Getsuga Tenshou that killed Gin and Aizen, but also injured four captains, the three who had gone after Aizen, and a fourth who was too close. He also injured three lieutenants, and fifty four other Shinigami. He was told it was a miracle, that he didn't kill anyone fighting on Soul Society's side.

That didn't mean he wouldn't kill someone from Soul Society's side, if they tried to make him leave Rukia.

After Ichigo had let off his gargantuan attack, he had fallen to the ground. He wasn't conscious when Inoue healed Rukia, and when he'd woken up, he'd been really pissed off that he was still alive. His intention had been to let off a blast so big that he killed himself in the process, but he hadn't been that lucky.

He quickly lost his irritation, when he found out that Rukia wasn't dead, but in a coma. He had jumped up out of his bed, and dragged all kinds of equipment with him as he ran for Rukia's room, which was right next to his own.

When he got to her side, he blinked in amazement. He couldn't help himself either, he had to push her hair to her side and feel her neck, where she'd been slashed. When he felt no trace of the cut, he'd been so relieved.

Unohana walked in Rukia's room in that instant, and Ichigo had spun around frantically.

"Why is she in a coma? She's healed, right?" Ichigo had asked, and Unohana shook her head at him.

"The wound itself was healed, but mentally she received too much of a shock when Tousen cut her. Her mind shut down voluntarily. I don't know if we'll ever get her back." Unohana had said.

Ichigo stared at her after she said that, but no matter how much he tried, he couldn't believe that Rukia would voluntarily stay in her coma. She was too strong to put herself into that kind of place voluntarily.

"Not Rukia, she'll definitely come back." Ichigo kept saying, and he said that for a week. He refused to leave Rukia's side, saying that he knew she was strong enough. She just needed encouragement.

It was hard for Renji, both dealing with his friend in a coma, and Ichigo sitting next to her, telling her that she needed to wake up, because he didn't think he could live without ever feeling her punch him again.

Renji had stood in the hallway, right outside the door, listening to Ichigo try and encourage Rukia to leave her coma, because he was in denial about how serious it actually was.

Ichigo went on, and on. He talked about how they were supposed to be celebrating, now that Aizen was dead, and not being unresponsive in a hospital bed.

Ichigo would lean down and constantly remind Rukia of some promise that she must have made to Ichigo, of course Renji has no idea what promise Ichigo is talking about, but Ichigo stays positive for a full week, before his attitude changes.

When Ichigo had been encouraging her, he'd eaten some of the food that Hanatarou brought to him, since he refused to leave Rukia's room. Then after the week passes, he doesn't touch the food.

Byakuya finally was called in, to tell Ichigo he had to take care of himself. There had very nearly been a battle right next to Rukia, since Ichigo told Byakuya to go screw himself, when Byakuya told Ichigo to get some rest, and something to eat.

That was when Byakuya ordered Ichigo to leave Rukia's side, and instead, Ichigo whipped Zangetsu off his back. He had icily informed Byakuya that the only way that was happening was by killing or incapacitating him…then he'd gone bankai, which terrified everyone in the Fourth Division. Unohana and Isane ended up dragging Byakuya out of the room, and nobody else made any comments about the food left on Ichigo's plate.

When Ichigo thought he and Rukia were alone, he lost his temper with her, for making him worry to such an extent.

Once again, Renji listened outside of the door, as Ichigo ranted and raved at a comatose Rukia.

"How could you stay like this Rukia? How could you do it? It's pissing me off, that you haven't come out of this fucking coma! You're alive, so stop acting like you're dead!" Ichigo tried to keep his voice low, but he kept raising it until he had to calm down and take a few breaths, before he started all over again.

Renji felt himself wishing, that Ichigo would go back to encouraging her, since his anger is even harder to listen to.

Then the Third Seat of the Fourth Division gave the stupidest order that he ever gave in his life. It nearly cost him his seat, after the fact. He ordered Eighth Seat Okidou, to give Rukia a sponge bath. The previously known pretty boy was missing all of his teeth and was half dead by the time Ichigo finished with him.

Ichigo had swiped the sponge from the kid and said he'd give Rukia the sponge bath himself. Everybody agreed it was best to keep that information from the Sixth Division Captain…

Ichigo's angry phase doesn't last quite a week, but long enough to have the entire Fourth Division completely at their wits end. Nobody could do anything in Rukia's room without twenty questions from Ichigo about what they were doing, or why they were doing it. By the fourth day, only Unohana and Yamada Hanatarou were willing to go and administer to Rukia, everyone else was terrified of setting off Ichigo's temper.

When he finally seemed to get over his anger, he only became more pitiful to watch, and of course Renji saw this as well.

"I'll follow every order you ever give me, I'll never call your drawings anything bad, ever again, I'll do anything in the world to see you come out of this. You happy now? You can wake up, tell me to go fuck myself, and I'll do just that because you said so. I'll apologize to Byakuya, I'll get down on my knees and ask forgiveness if you tell me to. Whatever you want, I'll give it to you, but only if you wake up." Ichigo's voice had been so damned desperate, so emotional, and so raw that Renji couldn't listen beyond that.

Ichigo stays like that for two days, and then what comes next is even scarier than before.

Ichigo still refuses to leave Rukia's side, but he no longer has any energy or sparks left when he talks. His head hangs down, and cries when he thinks nobody is looking.

Nobody notices the small puddle of tears that sits in between Ichigo's feet. He can't stop shedding them, when he's alone with her.

It's amazing to Ichigo, to feel tear after tear, fall down his cheeks. He didn't know he was capable of crying so many tears, he thought he'd cried them all away in the past…

Everyone is still rather wary of Ichigo, which ends up making it easier to keep his head down, when people are in the room. Nobody needs to see how red and puffy his eyes are from his constant weeping. Nobody needs to see how red and snot filled his nose is because he can't get over how sad the thought of life is, without Rukia's silliness filling in the boring spots.

He only dozes off for small amounts of time, and he has stopped talking. He stays like that until he's incapable of crying another tear. He can only stare tiredly at Rukia. Even though he won't leave her side, he has finally accepted that she's in a serious coma, that she may never come out of.

"Don't think I'm going to stop staying here, even if you do stay like that forever. I'm always going to be here for you, Rukia." Ichigo whispers, and he takes her hand to squeeze it.

All he has left now is to believe in Rukia, and hope that she doesn't stay a sleeping beauty, for the rest of her life.

_Rukia's Hell…_

When Rukia opens her eyes, she finds herself stuck in the past. To be precise, she finds herself being ordered into Karakura Town, for her first assignment there. She knows immediately that she's in the past, but she doesn't let on at all, what she knows.

This is her chance, to make everything right. She wonders whether or not she has the hougyoku back in her spirit form, but she decides not to focus on that at the moment, since she believes it to be highly unlikely that she still has it. The fact that she retains her memories, must mean that only her mind has gone back, not her body.

She makes her way to the scene of the hollow attack that she knows for sure is about to occur. She doesn't enter the Kurosaki residence through Ichigo's bedroom this time.

No, this time, she's going to focus only on her mission. She enters through the lower floor and ducks around a corner when she sees Karin. Ichigo had warned her that Karin could see as well as him once, so she doesn't want Karin alerted to her presence. Rukia pulls out her zanpakutou.

"Dance, Sode No Shirayuki." Rukia says, preparing in advance for the attack that is sure to come.

She's not disappointed. This time, when she hears the scream, she dashes out into the open.

"Daddy!" Yuzu screams as her father is pushed against the wall.

Yuzu takes one look at her father's bloody back, and she dashes up the stairs to get her brother. Karin is shaking, and staring at the hollow.

"Second Dance, White Ripple!" Rukia calls out, as the hollow is reaching out to take Karin in its hands.

The hollow is quickly covered in ice, and Yuzu returns back downstairs with Ichigo. Karin is staring wide eyed at Rukia, and Ichigo stops short when he sees her too.

"Who are you?" Ichigo asks, as he stares at her uniform. Rukia smiles softly at him. She pulls out her memory modifier as she approaches him.

"I'm sure you don't realize that we've had this discussion once before, but you have no reason to worry. Everything will be okay." Rukia says, before she puffs him with the nifty tool. Yuzu freaks out when her brother falls to the ground, and Karin glares up at Rukia.

"What in the hell did you do to my brother?" Karin yells, just before Rukia gets her with the device as well.

Yuzu is the easiest target, since she doesn't see it coming.

Rukia walks over to Isshin, and quickly heals his wounds. When she's finished up, she comes back over to Ichigo. She squats down, and tousles his hair.

"I'm always going to look out for you." Rukia whispers, with a soft smile, before she leaves.

The next night, she defeats Inoue's brother, before he can ever leave Ichigo's bedroom where he first appears. Ichigo had been very shocked, but he seemed relieved to see her, which made her wonder if her memory modifier could work on him, due to his reiatsu, even without being a Shinigami. She remembers when he broke her binding spell the first time she met him.

She spends everyday, protecting him from hollows, watching him walk to and from school, and live his life. It's obvious to Rukia, that becoming a Shinigami matured him a great deal, after spending a week observing him. He's back to being the same brat he was the day she met him.

She knows he sees her rather often, when she's killing hollows, and she even performs a few soul burials in his presence.

He's stopped trying to talk to her, since she never has anything to say to him. She always swoops in, saves his life, smiles at him with love in her eyes, and leaves.

When it's time to go to his mother's grave, Rukia hops through the trees, keeping an eye on the family. When the Grande Fisher shows up, as she expected him to, she defeats him quickly, and keeps her close watch on Ichigo.

Then it's time to return back to Soul Society. Rukia knows she can't do it, without making sure he's protected, and so when she reports the situation to her captain, he orders her to stay there, and protect the human. Rukia smiled at that order and she hung up her phone as she smiled.

"Gladly!" Rukia said with a grin.

Everything went really smoothly, except that suddenly, Ichigo got sick of wondering who she was, and when she killed another hollow trying to kill him, he shocked the hell out of her, by tackling her to the ground, and holding her there with his arms and legs.

"Why do you constantly save my life? You don't say a word to me, you just show up, save my life, and then disappear again. Not this time, I'm not letting you go until you tell me what in the hell is going on, what you are, and what those things are that you keep killing!" Ichigo shouts, right into her face.

"Please get off of me," Rukia says, feeling horrified at how nice it is, to have him above her like this.

"If I do, you'll disappear. I don't make it a habit of doing this to girls, but you're going to explain to me, and when I'm satisfied, I'll let you up." Ichigo tells her in a firm voice.

Rukia doesn't want to hurt him, but she brings her foot up very quickly and kicks him in the head, knocking him several meters back. Rukia stands, and dusts herself off. Ichigo grumbles as he gets back up to his feet.

"I save your life because it is my duty to protect humans from hollows. Hollows come to pray on humans and souls, and for some strange reason, they've targeted you. I am a Shinigami who sends souls to the death life and also exterminates the hollows that target human life. Do you understand?" Rukia asks him, and he looks at her blankly for a second, before he walks back over to her.

"Rukia! Stop acting like you're dead!" He yells in her face, and she jumps back before she looks at him weirdly.

"What?" Rukia asks, and he stares at her, just as strangely.

"I didn't say anything, yet. But your explanation…could you elaborate?" Ichigo asks, and Rukia stares at him strangely. "And what is your name?" He asks her, and she gawks at him.

"You just said my name." Rukia tells him, and he looks at her like she's a lunatic.

"No I didn't, Shinigami." Ichigo tells her, and Rukia wonders whether or not she's losing her mind.

"I am Kuchiki Rukia." She tells him, with a strange feeling all around her.

This was when things started to get strange, between her and Ichigo, he seemed to take on two personalities. In some moments, he's the magnificent Ichigo that she remembers with his bankai, his maturity, and understanding that she knows he possessed. Other times, he's the same brat that she met before he gained his powers from her.

She still keeps an eye on him, but every once in awhile, he looks up to her position in the trees, and says something that Shinigami Ichigo would say.

"Don't think I'm going to stop staying here, even if you do stay like that forever. I'm always going to be here for you, Rukia" He had said quietly up to her, and even though he was very quiet, she heard every word.

Once again, Rukia has that weird feeling.

After several weeks of living life like this, Rukia begins to feel such an emptiness. She misses her close relationship with Ichigo, it's easy to miss it when he reminds her of what they have with his strange comments to her from time to time.

She finally can't take it anymore. She calls Soul Society, but she's ordered to stay put, and protect Ichigo.

"It's too hard! I don't want to do this anymore! No part of this feels right! I want my old life back!" Rukia closes her eyes, and screams it at the top of her lungs.

Rukia is shocked, when she opens her eyes in a hospital bed, rather than the real world. Ichigo is staring right at her, with a look of happy shock on his face.

_Ichigo & Rukia in Heaven…_

"Rukia!" Ichigo says, and she can tell he hasn't been sleeping well.

"Ichigo…" Rukia didn't realize her throat would feel like cotton balls were wedged into it when she tried to speak.

"Thank goodness you woke up! I was worried I'd spend the rest of my life in this room with you," Ichigo whispers, as he stares at her with amazement in his eyes.

Unohana walks in with water, and hands it to Rukia, who takes it gratefully. Unohana quickly leaves the room, sensing that the pair have things to say to one another.

"How long have I been like this?" Rukia asks him, and Ichigo gives her a pointed look.

"A month and a half." Ichigo says in a low voice, and Rukia can tell. He's spent a month and a half, not eating right or sleeping right. He looks damn near broken, and it pains her that it was her who half killed him.

"I'm sorry…" Rukia mutters, and she stares at Ichigo.

"Don't be sorry." Ichigo orders her, and Rukia stares at him.

"Is Aizen…dead?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo gives a short nod.

"Which means you're about a month and a half late, on keeping your promise to me." Ichigo reminds her, and Rukia smiles. She never forgot about their promise.

"Get ni-sama." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo gives her a regretful look.

"He refuses to be in the same room with me, I'm a bad choice." Ichigo warns her, and Rukia gives him a look.

"What did you do?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo holds up his hands.

"He started it!" Ichigo swears, and Rukia glares a little more.

"How am I supposed to keep my promise, if he won't come in here?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo shrugs.

"He'd probably come if you asked him to…" Ichigo mutters, and Rukia rolls her eyes.

"Renji, stop hiding around the other side of that door, and go get ni-sama!" Rukia's voice is much stronger now. Ichigo looks back swiftly, to see Renji hurrying away.

"He was listening?!" Ichigo shouts angrily and Rukia grabs his arm.

"Shut up, he's my friend." Rukia snaps, and Ichigo looks back down at her before he blushes.

"You should know…I was the one giving you your sponge baths…" Ichigo mutters, and Rukia turns bright red at that information.

"Why?" Rukia asks in a squeak. That only causes anger to fill his eyes though.

"Because they sent some guy to do it! No way was I letting that happen!" Ichigo growls, and Rukia blushes again.

"You…saw me…naked?" Rukia asks, disbelievingly, and Ichigo nods his head yes.

"You're beautiful, stop looking at me like that. I wasn't a pervert about it." Ichigo says, as he crosses his arms with annoyance, and Rukia glares at him.

"I just thought that I'd be there to see your face the first time you saw me naked." Rukia mutters, and that causes Ichigo to turn bright red.

"I didn't think that far into it, I saw red when that guy came in to give you a sponge bath…" Ichigo mutters, and Rukia nods.

"I think it's only fair that I get to see your junk." Rukia says, crossing her arms, and Ichigo turns bright red.

"Later." Ichigo mutters, and Rukia smiles.

"I'll hold you to that." She warns him, and he stays red.

Byakuya enters the room, and pretends like Ichigo doesn't exist, even as he walks over and stands right next to him. He looks down at Rukia.

"You're finally awake. Ukitake will be pleased." Byakuya says, and Rukia smiles.

"Thank you for coming to see me, ni-sama. I called you here, because I wanted to let you know that Ichigo and I made an agreement, on our way to fight Aizen." Rukia says, and Byakuya's eyes get icy at the mention of Ichigo, but he nods his head.

"Go ahead." Byakuya says, and Rukia looks up at him pleadingly.

"I told him I'd do everything in my power, to be with him always, and he told me he wanted to marry me when it was all over." Rukia says, and Byakuya stays quiet for an instant.

"I'll support whatever makes you happy." Byakuya says, with a catch in his voice.

"Thank you, ni-sama," Rukia says, as tears form in her eyes.

"I have work to do." Byakuya's voice sounds abnormal, but Ichigo and Rukia are too focused on each other to pay too much attention to it.

"Renji, could you give Ichigo and I a moment of privacy, and close the door on your way out?" Rukia asks sweetly, causing Ichigo to turn white.

"Sure." Renji says, and he heads out, closing the door. Rukia crosses her arms and smiles devilishly at Ichigo.

"Well?" Rukia asks. Ichigo turns bright red, but he wouldn't deny her anything in the world that she asked for, after wishing to hear her sassy tone again, for so long.

Rukia watches avidly, as Ichigo blushes fiercely, and puts his hand on the ties that hold his bottoms up. He pulls them loose, and his pants fall with a swoosh to his feet, and Rukia's eyes widen at the view.

"Holy mother of god…" Rukia says, as she puts a hand to her mouth and stares. Ichigo blushes.

"Are you satisfied yet?" Ichigo asks as he bends over to grab his bottoms back up. Rukia's eyes stay wide, and once his bottoms are firmly back in place, he sees that she still looks shocked.

"What?!" Ichigo explodes, and Rukia gives him an uncertain stare.

"Are they supposed to be that big?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo blushes.

"Shut up." Ichigo says, and he climbs into the bed with her. He finally falls into a peaceful sleep. Rukia holds him close, and runs her hands through his hair.

_I had better keep that thing a well guarded secret._


	109. As Requested: Inheritance 5

**A/N-I had a request to continue on with Inheritance, and so this chapter is dedicated to that person, and the others who really like this particular series, please enjoy!**

_Inheritance 5_

Byakuya rushes to Soukyoku Hill when the bright light shines down on Soul Society. He hasn't seen Rukia in several months, and the last time he saw her, she was quite big, from pregnancy.

A lot of people are hurrying, since everyone wants to see the prince or princess of the Royal Dimension. Renji, Ukitake, and Byakuya stand at the front of the crowd, while the rest of the captains and lieutenants, gather behind them.

Ichigo and Rukia move slowly together down the path. Rukia is obviously carrying a small white bundle in her arms, their firstborn baby.

Everyone drops to their knees, and bows their heads in respect, until Rukia and Ichigo step foot off the path and onto Soukyoku Hill.

"We've come to introduce someone to you, come here, ni-sama!" Rukia says, and Byakuya stands, and steps towards Rukia.

"Ukitake-san, Renji, you should come look too." Ichigo says, and Byakuya finally gets a look at the child in Rukia's arms.

Bright orange hair, and piercing blue eyes are the first thing that Byakuya sees.

"Her name is Yuzuki." Rukia says softly, to her brother as she holds the baby out to her brother.

Renji, and Ukitake quickly crowd around Byakuya, as he takes Yuzuki and holds her in his arms.

"She's adorable!" Ukitake exclaims, and Renji laughs.

"At least she got Rukia's eyes, even if Ichigo did pass her his hair color." Renji comments.

"Thanks, Ichigo and I have been so happy!" Rukia exclaims, and Ukitake looks at Ichigo.

"I haven't had any problems, since you put me in your healing barrier…and I must thank you, I don't remember feeling so healthy in the past." Ukitake says, and Ichigo smiles broadly.

"I'm really glad to hear it." Ichigo says, with a nod of his head.

Suddenly everyone notices just how proud Ichigo looks. They had been so focused on Rukia and little Yuzuki that they hadn't noticed just how swelled up with pride Ichigo is, at the birth of his first child.

"How do you like being a father?" Yachiru suddenly chirps, and Ichigo looks surprised, that she has popped out from behind Ukitake's robes.

"He adores being a father, he's so cute with her." Rukia says with a loving smile, and she looks up at Ichigo with love shining brightly in her eyes.

"I'm not surprised," Ukitake says, as he grins at the couple. "He certainly cherishes his wife a lot, it's only natural that he'd cherish his daughter." Ukitake finishes.

Yachiru boldly climbs up Byakuya's robes to get a better look at Yuzuki. As Byakuya stares at his niece, she smiles quickly and suddenly. Byakuya is surprised at how her blue eyes sparkle in the instant that she was smiling. It's easy to see why Kurosaki is so in love with his daughter. Byakuya is in love with the orange haired beauty, too.

The Captain Commander comes over, to get a gander at the child, and his eyes widen at the hair, which is identical in color to her father's hair. The crowd hushes as he clears his throat, to give an announcement.

Yuzuki takes the quiet moment to let out a loud wail, and Ichigo quickly takes his daughter out of Byakuya's arms.

"Shhhh, it's okay, Yuzuki," Ichigo croons, and the little girl quickly calms down as Ichigo cradles her.

"The Princess of the Royal Dimension and Soul Society is here! The King and Queen present their daughter, Kurosaki Yuzuki!" The Captain Commander announces, and a huge cheer sounds from the crowd gathered.

"See, I told you everyone would cheer for you," Ichigo says as he smiles at his little girl. She balls up a tiny fist and lets out a loud shriek at her father.

Soon, all of the captains have been able to come over to Rukia and Ichigo to see her, though Ichigo hangs onto her while they do.

After everyone has met Yuzuki, Ichigo demands to have their reiatsu sealed so that they can take the baby to meet Isshin, Karin, and Yuzu.

When they arrive in the living world, in front of the Kurosaki home, Isshin comes tearing out of the house, to finally get the chance to meet his grandchild.

"Finally! Let me see!" Isshin yells at the top of his lungs, with a big fat smile plastered all over his face.

Ichigo proudly presents Yuzuki to his father, and Isshin takes her immediately. He purposely looks away from the crack in the earth that he had created in the past, since he's a bit embarrassed that he created what his friends call the Kurosaki River.

"This is Yuzuki." Rukia tells him, and Isshin starts to kiss his grandchild on her forehead, dozens of times.

"Ichi-ni!" Karin yells excitedly, as she and Yuzu run outside.

"Here she is! Yuzuki!" Isshin says, and Yuzu begins to smile at that name, since her name is so close to her niece's name.

"Wow, she's tiny!" Karin says, and Ichigo laughs.

"Just like her mother." Ichigo says, and Rukia grins as Yuzu starts to bug Isshin for the right to hold little Yuzuki.

"Grandpa is going to tell you an interesting story, about how your mommy and daddy met! Lets go inside so I can tell you all of the juicy details!" Isshin says, and the entire family starts to move inside, but then they hear a yell.

Sado, Ishida, and Inoue are all at the end of the street, struggling to move closer to the family, who all seem just fine in the spiritual power of the King and Queen of Soul Society.

Ichigo and Rukia both laugh.

"Hey! We're going to shunpo out of here for a minute, so go and sit in the family room!" Ichigo shouts, the volume of his voice, challenges that of his father's.

Sado waves gratefully, and Isshin hurries inside with the baby. Karin and Yuzu are right behind him.

Ishida, Inoue, and Sado, make it as far as the front door, where they all fall to their knees due to the reiatsu of Ichigo's and Rukia's young infant. They end up having to crawl to the couch, and barely make it to sitting positions, when Ichigo and Rukia come in through the door.

Isshin finally gives Yuzuki to Yuzu, as Ichigo and Rukia enter the house.

The trio of friends are all very shocked at how easily Karin and Yuzu both move in the presence of Ichigo, Rukia, and their young daughter.

None of their friends are able to lift their arms to hold the baby, but Yuzu gladly presents the newest member of the Kurosaki family, to all of Ichigo's friends, and raises the little girl's arm to wave at them, as she stops in front of each of them with the tiny girl.

"She's really cute." Sado says, and his eyes widen as he beholds the beautiful infant in Yuzu's arms. Ichigo stands close to Rukia and rests his hand in the small of her back. Isshin goes to collect Yuzuki from Yuzu, and he smiles hugely.

"Now for how your mommy and daddy met! Your dad was only fifteen, when a tiny but amazing Shinigami came and saved his life, and the lives of his family. She did so, by giving him her powers." Isshin says, and Ichigo's eyes widen, that his father knows.

"Rukia! Did you tell him?" Ichigo hisses, and Rukia just blushes, as she shakes her head no.

"The moment your dad laid eyes on your mom, he was struck by love! He was too young and stubborn to realize it, but your old grandpa noticed the change immediately! His scowl didn't have quite as much of a punch to it, and a light shined in his eyes that I hadn't seen since Masaki was here with us! You know Masaki, my beautiful wife…she gets to spend all kinds of time with you, doesn't she? But she wasn't around for this awesome story!" Isshin says, and Inoue bites her lip.

_Was it really when she first arrived, that he started to fall for her?_

"Shut up…" Ichigo growls, and his face is bright red. He notices as his friends all begin to understand what happened between he and Rukia a lot more clearly.

"I will not! Now, Yuzuki, the best part was that your mom stowed away in your dad's closet! Now mind you, he was a perfect gentleman back then, since your mom is the kind of woman that demands respect! With each day they spent together, your dad fell in deeper and deeper in love with her. He of course, stubborn fool that he can be, refused to acknowledge it! Can you believe that? Say daddy's an idiot!" Isshin says, and Ichigo clenches his fist.

"Don't tell her to say that!" Ichigo growls, and Rukia smothers a laugh next to him. She for one is enthralled by Isshin's version of how Ichigo fell in love with her, since Ichigo would never use so many words to tell this particular story. He has definitely gotten used to the show of physical affection, but when it comes to his communication skills, improvement is quite slow.

"Ichi-ni, she can't talk yet," Karin points out, but Ichigo is embarrassed that everything is focused on his and Rukia's beginnings.

"But something forced your dad to sit up and pay attention to his very strong feelings of love, and that was the fear of your mom being executed." Isshin says gravely.

With that, everyone in the room stops smiling as they reflect on that night. Ichigo, Rukia, and Ishida in particular, since they all experienced so many emotions that night.

Inoue takes a few deep breaths…when she hears it all this way, it tears at her heart in ways she can never explain. She is sure that she'll never lose her love for Kurosaki-kun.

_I never stood a chance though, not at all._

"Your father is a good storyteller." Rukia whispers, and Ichigo just closes his eyes, as his father finally decides to continue on.

"Your dad finally started acting like a true man, and he went to save the woman he loves. He endured torturous pain, dangerous battles, and hard nights…but in the end, he managed a magnificent rescue. And you don't need to worry about forgetting these details, grandpa will make sure you know about it!" Isshin says, and Ichigo can't stop blushing.

"Are you done yet?" Ichigo demands. His father is not.

"Did you know that I even had to announce to your idiot of a father that he had to pick a wife? He did nothing but respect and protect your mother, all the way up until the wedding night, where he learned how to really love, cherish, and respect her, all at the same time. Your mother is also guilty of respecting and protecting the hell out of your father, but she too, learned how to love him so that we could all be blessed with your presence!" Isshin says, and Ichigo walks over to relieve his father of his tiny daughter.

"She's heard enough! Rukia and I will leave, and come back to visit you very soon!" Ichigo says in an angry voice, which makes Rukia laugh.

_All this talk about him falling for me, kind of makes me want to give Yuzuki a little brother or sister!_

Ichigo and Rukia leave the house, where Rukia opens the gates to Soul Society, and the three quickly go through.

"Ichigo…what do you think about having a second one." Rukia asks, as she nods at Yuzuki, and Ichigo's eyes light up happily. They walk down the path quickly, but not so fast that they shake the baby.

"I like the way you think!" Ichigo says happily, knowing for sure that he's going to get some action, right after they get home and hand the baby to his mom to keep an eye on.

_No matter how much time passes, going to bed with Rukia is always my dream._

**A/N-Yuzuki means superiority and moon :)**


	110. As Requested: Pregnant Friends Again

**A/N- I had a request to continue from chapter 40, and to focus on Inoue a bit, however I already had continued that chapter for 41, so I'm going to fulfill the request a tiny bit differently, it's dedicated to the person that requested it, please enjoy!**

_Pregnant Friends Again_

"Mom…I haven't seen Risa's mom in while." Mizuki tells her mother, who is showing in her pregnancy, even though she's only about halfway through.

"I haven't seen Orihime in awhile either. I wonder what's going on." Rukia says, and Mizuki gives her mom a nervous look.

"Risa says her father is acting strangely." Mizuki says, and Rukia sighs.

"I guess Ichigo and I will go over and visit with her, to find out what's going on…" Rukia says, looking guilty.

_I haven't seen her since just after the birthday party, I really should have checked in on her sooner…_

"Can you go soon? The whole thing seems off to me." Mizuki says, and Rukia tucks a strand of her daughter's bright orange hair behind her ear.

"I promise you I will check it out today." Rukia says, and Mizuki lets out a sigh of relief.

"Risa's mom is really nice…I don't like that I haven't seen her." Mizuki says, and Rukia realizes that her daughter is truly worried.

"I'm sure Ishida wouldn't let anything happen to his wife." Rukia says, and Mizuki shrugs.

"I was going over there regularly until last month, when her dad said he didn't want visitors anymore." Mizuki says, and Rukia frowns.

_I do remember him saying that but I didn't think he'd actually meant it…_

"He's still sticking to that?" Rukia asks, and Mizuki nods her head vigorously.

"And Risa hasn't even seen her mom." Mizuki finally says, and Rukia's mouth gapes open.

"What!?" Rukia cannot believe that Risa hasn't seen her own mother since they live in the same house.

"Yeah…" Mizuki says, and Rukia's eyes remain wide.

"You said you hadn't seen her…but Risa-chan hasn't seen her either?" Rukia echoes, and Mizuki nods miserably.

"Yeah…" Mizuki says, and Rukia takes a deep breath.

"I hope your father gets home soon." She says, as she looks at the clock.

_At Ishida's House…_

"I don't want to do this to you Orihime…but I can't let you have an abortion. It has to be this way until you give me your word that you won't do anything to end this pregnancy." Ishida says in a quiet but firm voice to his wife, who he has tied up in the bedroom with special Quincy thread that Tsubaki cannot break.

"It's my body!" His wife argues, and Ishida sighs.

"I know it is…and I truly agree that women should have the right…but…not in this case. Not with a Quincy's life on the line." Ishida says in a sad voice, and she closes her eyes.

"Do you know how wrong it is to have your wife tied up in the bedroom as your prisoner?!" She asks him for what seems like the hundredth time.

"I don't want to do this to you! But I feel too strongly! We used protection and you got pregnant anyways! We should not throw away this human life!" Ishida says, and his wife starts to cry.

"If you think I'll ever let you have sex with me again…" She says as she sobs, and he shakes his head.

"Don't be like that…you know me! You know I love you, and I love Risa…I love her so much that I don't want you to destroy her chance at having a brother or sister! One more time…please! One more time, please give birth to another Quincy!" He begs her, and she turns her head away from him.

"You're going to make me hate you!" She tells him, still sobbing, and he clings to her.

"I don't want that…I love you…I know you probably think it doesn't seem like it right now, but please, please just give me your word that you'll continue this pregnancy, and it will all end!" He says in a frantic voice, and she doesn't respond.

The sound of the doorbell ringing makes Ishida want to tear his hair out. He doesn't want to see anyone when he's feeling so shitty. He's got his wife tied up like he's some sort of sick psycho, and like she said, he's holding her prisoner.

"Dad!" Risa's voice floats up the stairs, and Ishida swears, and he knows he doesn't have to gag his wife…she doesn't want Risa to know he has done to her.

"Whoever it is, I don't want to see them!" Ishida roars at the top of his lungs, and he nearly jumps out of his skin when he hears Kurosaki yell back at him.

"Too damned bad! My wife is worried, so you're going to see us whether or not you want to!" Ichigo's voice booms throughout the entire house, and Orihime's eyes widen.

"Kurosaki-kun…" Ishida's wife says, and he feels like his head is about to explode.

"I'll be back as soon as I get rid of him." Ishida snaps before he heads out and locks the door from the outside, with a key.

Ishida runs down the stairs, and sees that his daughter has allowed the Kurosaki couple to enter.

"Now is not a good time Kurosaki." Ishida says in an irritated voice, and Ichigo gives him a smile that makes him take a step back.

"You know my wife is pregnant, and that stress is bad for a pregnancy." Ichigo says, and Ishida crosses his arms.

"What does that have to do with you coming over here uninvited?" He asks, and Rukia glares at him.

"I haven't seen Orihime in awhile…my daughter hasn't seen her…and neither has your daughter. If you don't mind, I'd like to see her now." Rukia says in a clipped voice, and Ishida's eyes widen.

"You can't she left town to go see-" Ishida starts to say, but Rukia holds up her hand.

"Who do you think you're talking to? I can sense her right now, from where I stand, and I want to see her." Rukia says in a snappy voice, and Ishida sighs.

"I should have known. The lie was her idea. She's sick, and doesn't want to see anyone. She's been like that for awhile." Ishida lies, and Rukia's annoyance turns to concern.

"I don't care if she doesn't want to be seen, I want to see her." Rukia says, and Ichigo takes a step forward.

"My wife wants to see her, and we'll do it by force if you won't be cooperative." Ichigo says, as he remembers the tearful way in which Mizuki had begged him to make sure Ishida-san was okay.

Ishida sighs.

"Hang on. Let me at least tell her, so that she can put something on besides what she's wearing." Ishida says, to stall for time, and Ichigo nods his head.

Ishida tears up the stairs, and quickly unlocks the door.

_I can't let them see her tied up…I have to get her agreement now._

"I've made a decision." She speaks before he has the chance to.

"Really? What's that?" Ishida asks, even though he's feeling panicked at the moment.

"I will continue this pregnancy…but…if I get pregnant again, I will not tell you. I will go and terminate it without telling you, since you can't be trusted with that kind of information." His wife says in a defeated voice, and Ishida is ready to praise the heavens.

"Thank you Orihime! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Ishida says, before he leans down to kiss her cheek, which she flinches at.

"Don't thank me. I'm not doing it happily." She tells him in a hard voice, and he immediately gets Seele Schneider out of the closet to cut the special Quincy threads off of her.

"It means the world to me that you changed your mind." Ishida tells her, and she glares at him.

"I didn't change it out of the goodness of my heart, I changed it because I couldn't take one more minute of being tied up in this room, with you watching my every move if I wasn't tied up in here!" She snaps at him, and he takes a step back.

"I did it for the sake of our future child's life!" He defends, and she steps forward to smack him across the face.

"I don't care why you did it, you violated me! You kept me tied up, and that is sick! I don't care if you don't like the idea of me having an abortion, for me to have one is legal, and for you to tie up your wife like a prisoner is not!" She snaps, and he rushes forward to hug her.

"Please forgive me, Orihime…" Ishida says, and his wife cries into his shoulder, hitting at his arms for the indignity she's suffered, and mad that she can't despise him for what he's done to her.

She pulls away from him and wipes the tears from her face, before she glares at him.

"Don't touch me for awhile, okay?" She says, and he sighs as she puts on her robe, and grabs a brush.

"Kurosaki and his wife are here, they want to see you." Ishida tells her, and she snorts.

"I already knew they were here." She says, and he nods.

_She must have sensed them here._

"They'll be surprised when they see you…" Ishida says, and she turns on him.

"That's because women who are happy to be pregnant usually cannot wait to announce it to their friends! She knows how I feel about this too!" His wife hisses at him, and Ishida backs off.

_I don't care how crappy you treat me so long as you don't terminate this pregnancy…_

"Sorry…" Ishida mutters, and his wife throws the brush at him, a move he was not expecting since his wife has never done anything of the sort before.

"You are not sorry so don't even say you are! You did something horrible to another human being to get your way, and you would do it again in an instant if you thought I wouldn't keep my word!" She snaps at him, and he looks at the floor.

_Downstairs…_

"Something is definitely wrong…I don't sense Orihime's presence on the downstairs at all…it's like she hasn't set foot down here in ages." Rukia says in a low voice to her husband, who grits his teeth.

"What in the hell is taking them so long?" He wonders, even as he considers barging up the stairs with his wife, to make sure Ishida isn't playing funny games with them.

"Ichigo…when they get down here, I'm going to send you and Ishida to the store for food. Make sure you give me enough time with Orihime to get the story, okay?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo nods.

"Sure. I want to get to the bottom of this for Mizuki too." Ichigo says, and then they quiet down when they hear footsteps approaching.

"Shhhh…" Rukia says quietly, and Ichigo nods.

"It's about damned time." He grumbles as Ishida and his wife walk into sight, with Orihime looking a bit pasty and ill.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting." Orihime says, and that's when the Kurosaki couple notice her belly.

"Orihime…are you…pregnant?" Rukia gasps as she stares at her friend, knowing full well that her friend had said she didn't want to get pregnant again.

"Yeah…Ishida convinced me to change my mind, but I've been so miserable that I've holed myself up in my room. It wasn't fair to Risa or to any of my friends, but it was what I needed at the time," She explains, but Rukia can sense that something still isn't right, even if all explanations have been given to her previous questions.

"Ichigo I'm hungry. I'm sure Orihime is too. You two go get us food." Rukia orders him, and Ichigo grabs Ishida's arm before he yanks him out the door.

"What are you doing, Kurosaki! You don't need me to go with you!" Ishida argues, but Ichigo doesn't let go.

"Yes I do…it's best to stay away from Rukia when she starts getting bossy." Ichigo says, and Rukia lets it slide without yelling, since she wants her husband to keep on dragging her friend's husband out the door and away from them.

"Orihime!" Rukia says the moment the door shuts, and tears glisten in her friend's eyes.

"It's been awful…" She says, and Rukia stares at her.

"The pregnancy?" Rukia asks, and her friend shakes her head.

"He tied me up for a month." Orihime says, and Rukia misunderstands because she starts to grin.

"Sounds like Ichigo's and my honeymoon…except he was the one who was tied up." Rukia says, and her friend's eyes widen.

_No matter how long we're friends, she always shocks me!_

"What?" She asks, and Rukia blushes.

"Sorry, what on earth is wrong?" Rukia asks, and Orihime shakes her head.

"I think maybe you misunderstood me. My husband held me hostage, tied up in this house to prevent me from terminating the pregnancy." She explains, and Rukia's mouth drops open.

"Seriously!?" Rukia asks, and Inoue nods.

"He didn't free me until I gave my word not to terminate the pregnancy." Orihime explains, and Rukia bites her lip.

"I don't know what to say…because…I don't know how you could consider abortion when you're pregnant by the person you love." Rukia admits in a soft voice, and Orihime sighs.

"I know you don't, but you should be able to understand that it wasn't about me not loving my husband, or our daughter. I don't like being pregnant…and I don't want to be pregnant. That is why we were using birth control." Her friend explains, and Rukia nods her head.

"That's very logical and all, but I could never consider terminating a pregnancy that occurred due to Ichigo and me making love." Rukia says, and her friend smiles her.

"Nobody is saying you should. I just feel…violated." Orihime says, and Rukia nods.

"I can understand that…but…look on the bright side." Rukia says, and her friend looks at her.

"What's that?" She asks, and Rukia grins.

"We're pregnant together at least…maybe our future children will be best friends like our daughters are." Rukia says, and her friend smiles at that.

"Yeah that's one thing." She agrees, even as she wonders how her friend can deal with pregnancy so easily.

"Are you going to forgive him?" Rukia asks, and her friend sighs.

"I already have…because I do understand. I married a man who is practically his own species, and it's a species so endangered it's practically extinct. Even if I don't like it…I understand it." Orihime admits, and Rukia nods.

"That's got to be tough. You're really amazing to go through with it even though you don't want to." Rukia says, and Orihime sighs dejectedly at that.

"I did give my word…" She mutters, and Rukia shakes her head.

"You know…never mind." Rukia says, not wanting to bring up her friend's weakness, particularly since it seems like it's resolved, even if her friend is miserable.

"What?"

"Nothing." Rukia says, shaking her head.

"Tell me." Orihime insists, and Rukia sighs.

"Sometimes, you have to break your word." Rukia says in a firm voice, and Orihime gasps.

"Would you cheat on your husband?"

"Never!" Rukia says, and her friend nods.

"See? Keeping your word is the right thing to do." She says, and Rukia sighs.

"If that were true, both Ichigo and I would be dead right now. I gave my word when I became a Shinigami that I would follow the laws, and I broke many of them upon meeting Ichigo." Rukia reminds her, and Orihime nods her head slowly.

"Well…I'm going to continue this pregnancy…and I'm going to make him my slave for the rest of our marriage!" Orihime announces, and Rukia grins.

"That's more like it! You can come over anytime you like, or if you need me to come over, just call." Rukia says, and her friend smiles appreciatively at her.

"Thank you, I can believe it won't be so bad, since we're pregnant together again. It will be like old times." Orihime says, and Rukia nods.

"Definitely." Rukia says, and the two women begin to talk about everything from baby names to baby clothes until their husbands get back.

When Ishida gets back, he's clearly nervous that Rukia knows what he's done to his wife, but she gives off no hint that she knows anything until they're walking out the door, as they don't realize Ishida hasn't shut it yet when Rukia starts to talk.

"Apparently he tied her up." Rukia says, and Ishida's mouth drops open.

"Oh you mean like on our honeymoon?" Ichigo asks as they walk away, and Rukia shakes her head no at her husband.

"No…he is making sure she goes through the pregnancy." Rukia says, and Ichigo shakes his head.

"I always knew he had issues." Ichigo says, and Ishida shuts the door before he eyes his wife.

"You told her?" He asks, and she shrugs.

"If it was so wrong, you shouldn't have done it." She says, before she walks up the stairs, leaving her husband to look after her with a guilty look on his face before he sighs dejectedly.

_If only she was excited like Kurosaki's wife…then we could be celebrating instead of this._


	111. As Requested: Ichigo's Protection 4

**A/N- I had a request to continue this story, and it's dedicated to the person that requested it, please enjoy!**

_Ichigo's Protection 4_

When Rukia and Ichigo finally get home from school, they both feel very excited, due to the conversation they had on the way home. Rukia's entire body is fairly tingling, because Ichigo told her he would never accuse her of violating him. Her hands are practically itching to touch him, knowing he'll welcome the advance.

Rukia feels his eyes on her, and when she turns to look at him, he turns pink before he looks away from her.

"Ichigo, what's wrong?" Rukia asks, and he only meets her eyes for about a second before he looks away again to respond.

"Nothing is wrong." He tells her, but his voice cracks, and he wonders if she'll figure out just how much he's anticipating being violated by her.

Rukia smiles, since she does manage to figure out what's on his mind by his odd behavior.

"What's the matter? Can't wait until later?" She asks with a smirk, and Ichigo sucks in air so fast that he inhales a bit of spit, causing him to choke immediately.

Rukia whacks him on the back while he coughs his lungs out, and then he looks at her again. He can't think of a suitable reply to her question so he dodges it altogether.

"I need a shower."

Rukia watches him walk out of the room with a pleased smile on her face.

_It looks like he wants me as much as I want him!_

She briefly imagines how he might react if she joined him in the shower, but then she worries that she'll get caught in the act by his family, so she ditches that idea as soon as it comes.

"I'll get him later…" Rukia mutters, before she heads downstairs to get herself a drink.

Meanwhile, Ichigo is in the shower, wondering whether or not Rukia will make good on her promise to meet him in bed, hoping she wasn't just teasing him.

"To think this all is happening because Ooshima wanted to rape Rukia…" Ichigo shudders, since it was definitely a tense afternoon, getting into fights with more than one of Ooshima's friends, and then learning the son of a bitch had planned to rape Rukia.

_I was ready to kill that fucking piece of shit…_

He had been so damned relieved to find Ooshima in Rukia's binding spell, and to find Rukia completely unhurt, but because it was Rukia, he should have expected such an outcome.

_Why do I always feel the damned need to protect her? Rukia is tougher than Tatsuki, so I shouldn't even worry…but I can't help it._

Ichigo sighs as hot water runs down his shoulders and back. The desire to protect isn't only his own, it's Rukia's too. It's unfortunate that he continues to think of her as someone he must protect, but he knowss that the feeling has more to do with the fact that he's in love with her than not believing in her ability to fight and win.

_Trying to explain that to her is impossible…even though I'm sure she understands more than she lets on…_

Ichigo can't help but to believe that, since Rukia is no stranger to saving his ass, she's done so several times. That's why he'd been so disgusted by himself, when Grimmjow managed to get the best of her, while in his presence.

It had really made him feel like a pathetic piece of shit, even if Rukia didn't blame him after the fact. Seeing that had been motivation enough for him to get his hollow under control, since being unable to protect her had been too painful for words. Just like with his family over his mother's death, he wondered why Rukia didn't blame him for her wounds.

_It would make it easier if she did._

He rinses his body for a few minutes, letting the steam rise up and breathing deeply. His body is already prepared for any violating Rukia might have on her mind, and he's fairly certain he won't be able to get the boner to go away unless he relieves himself now, so he hurries to get that done before the water turns cold.

Imagining Rukia draped naked in his arms is the image he starts off with, and imagining her touching him where he's touching himself gets him really excited.

He accomplishes his goal before the water gets cold. He wonders what kind of experience he'll have with Rukia, if indeed she does decide to join him in bed, since she's so unpredictable sometimes. He can already tell that the minutes will pass by slowly, as long as he's anticipating what he hopes will happen.

_Later…_

After dinner, the girls go to work on their homework, and Isshin heads to the clinic to finish some paperwork that he hadn't had a chance to complete during the workday, leaving Ichigo and Rukia at the table together alone.

Ichigo so badly wants to bring up the fact that she promised to meet him in bed, but he doesn't know how to bring it up, so he watches her finish eating while he finishes his drink.

Rukia can feel Ichigo's eyes on her, so when she's done chewing her last bite, she looks at him and winks.

"Are you getting anxious for tonight?" Rukia asks him, and he blushes before he can answer her verbally.

"Are you really going to do it?" Ichigo asks her with wide eyes, and Rukia is shocked that his response is that.

"I'm not one to joke about something like that, Ichigo." Rukia tells him in a stern voice.

Her response makes his heart pound in anticipation, he was worried she already regretted what she'd said on the way home, but she seems bound and determined to join him in bed. The fact that she seems that way only makes him feel ridiculously happy.

They clear their dishes together, and tag team on cleaning the remaining dishes, since Yuzu needs a chance to get her homework done, then they head to the family room to watch a bit of television.

"What about your homework, Ichigo?" Rukia asks him, and Ichigo shrugs.

"I finished it after my shower." Ichigo says, watching her mouth drop open.

"Already!?" Rukia asks, and Ichigo grimaces.

_I hope that's the only time she says that tonight…_

"I'm sure there are mistakes, but at least it's done." Ichigo says, and Rukia smiles at him.

"What time do you think you'll go to bed?" Rukia asks him, and Ichigo's heart thumps so loudly he's certain she can hear it.

"I can go to bed right now if that's what you want." Ichigo says honestly, and Rukia can't help but to laugh a bit at his answer.

"It's a bit early, especially since your entire family is still awake." Rukia tells him, and even though he knows she makes sense, he's still a little bit disappointed.

He really can't wait to feel what it's like to hold her body right up against his own, since he already knows her skin is as soft as it appears. Waiting is driving him nuts. In his mind, he's been thinking of all of the things he wants to experience with her.

"I guess." Ichigo says, and Rukia can also feel her own heart pounding.

_This is the first time I'll allow a man this close to me…I'm glad I waited for the right guy even if it was a really long wait._

They stare into each other's eyes for a long moment before Ichigo looks away first with his face red. Ichigo stands to head up to his room, and as he passes Rukia, she smacks his ass, causing him to jump in mid-step.

"Sorry, I just wanted to feel it now." Rukia tells him, and somehow his face gets redder before he dashes up the stairs with her smiling after him.

_Later…_

The entire house is dark, and quiet when the closet door slides open, and Rukia silently walks over to the bed, wearing only a white and red rabbit nightgown since she didn't have the guts to get into his bed naked. When she pulls the covers aside to climb in, Ichigo's eyes snap open and he immediately scoots over so she can climb in next to him.

The first thing Rukia notices is that Ichigo is only wearing boxers, which she thinks is really sexy. As she gets settled, he slips an arm around her midsection, and pulls her up right against him, so that her front is pressed against his, while they lay on their sides.

"I can't believe you're actually here." Ichigo says in a husky voice, right up against her ear, and she shivers as his breath hits her ear.

"I already told you I wouldn't joke about something like that." Rukia reminds him, and he is prepared for that.

"I just figured you would change your mind…and not want to change the dynamic of our relationship as it is." Ichigo says honestly, and Rukia can understand that much.

"Once I had your permission, I knew I'd be here." Rukia tells him easily, and Ichigo's fingers twitch on her back when she confesses that much to him so easily.

"I'm glad you are. You're the only one I want like this." Ichigo says as he breathes in deeply the scent of her, and then leans forward to brush his lips against hers.

Rukia responds immediately, letting one hand rest on his chest, and the other on the back of his head as they slowly make the kissing more passionate and deep.

Then when the kiss ends, Ichigo shifts so that he's on top of her, and then he slowly lowers himself so that their fronts are touching again, before he begins to kiss her even more deeply than before.

He's slowly rocking into her, while they kiss, and Rukia can feel his arousal pushing in between her legs, even if his boxers and her nightgown keep him from being able to penetrate her already. The feeling is extremely exciting, to have him so close to her, and trying to get closer.

She suddenly notices they're both breathing more heavily, while Ichigo's tongue roams the inside of her mouth, and she's happy that he's clearly just as affected by their closeness as she is.

Then she feels his hands inching up the sides of her legs, and then up to her hips. She shivers in anticipation as his hands slowly make their way upwards, until he's just under her arms. Then he lifts his front up enough to be able to let his hands cup her breasts. Rukia stays perfectly still as he lets out a long breath, and then moves his index fingers and thumbs to begin teasing her nubs.

Rukia sucks in a deep breath, since she hadn't even expected for it to feel _this_ nice, to have him touching her like this, and she hopes she's doing a good job hiding how much of a novice she actually is, when it comes to intimacy.

He leans down to kiss her again, before he pulls back and begins to yank her nightgown up so that he can actually see everything, and when he does, he's speechless at how gorgeous she truly is, with nothing to hide her beauty from him.

"You know…after I got used to it, I liked it that people thought we were boyfriend and girlfriend at school," Ichigo suddenly tells her.

He kisses her again, and Rukia kisses him back with as much emotion as she can get into it, before she lets her hands travel down his back and then lets them rest on his perfect rump.

Ichigo isn't at all sure how he's supposed to hold back when the middle of his body is practically urging him to get on with it, but his mind wants to enjoy Rukia far more thoroughly than his midsection, so he does his best to ignore the fact that his body is begging for penetration, but he does keep rocking his middle against hers, torturing his own body slowly but pleasantly.

When Rukia's hand slips down his boxers, he loses all train of thought and freezes in place as she experimentally touches him, and then begins to squeeze him.

"Does that hurt?" She asks him curiously, and Ichigo bites his lip.

"No…it feels too damned good." Ichigo says in a tight voice, and Rukia squeezes him again, getting a grunt in response.

"Really?" Rukia asks, as his eyes roll up into his head a bit, and he lets out a long shaky breath in response.

"Stop it Rukia…if you keep that up, I won't be able to take my time like I wanted to." Ichigo says in a voice that is no good at convincing her to stop.

"I like making you feel good though." Rukia protests, and Ichigo has to remove her hand from him, and take a few deep breaths before he continues to pursue his quest in making their first time as perfect as humanly possible.

"Wait…there are places I want to kiss you." Ichigo informs her, and Rukia's eyes widen.

"Like where?" Rukia asks curiously, and he smiles sexily at her.

"Everywhere." Ichigo says in a confident voice, and Rukia lets out a sigh at that.

"That sounds nice." Rukia says, and Ichigo gets to work on kissing her everywhere that he can access.

Rukia closes her eyes, and gasps once in awhile, when Ichigo's lips press against more sensitive areas of her body, and then she hears the shifting sound of him removing his boxers which causes her entire body to get goose bumps in anticipation of them being naked together.

When Ichigo presses his body against hers once more, they start kissing again, and Rukia can hardly believe how amazing it feels, and how good he's capable of making her feel. Then he uses his legs to spread her legs further apart, and then she feels his fingers creeping in between her legs, which makes her gasp in shock.

"Ichigo…" Rukia mumbles as the feelings quickly become far more extreme, and she begins to squirm underneath his experimental touching, since she's so damned sensitive down there.

Ichigo's breath is still heavy and he's completely into touching her, and Rukia loves it too, even if the feelings are so intense that she feels like she could completely lose all of her sanity in the process.

When he replaces his fingers with his boner, Rukia nearly shoots off the bed, but he's suddenly leaning down to kiss her passionately again, and she's sucked right into it, since she never knew she could enjoy kissing so damned much.

He slides around her moist area, and then he locates the spot he needs to be in order to make love to her, but she's so tiny there, that he's very nervous about the final act.

"Rukia…" Ichigo's voice sounds like a mixture of nervousness and regret, which Rukia doesn't really understand until he begins to penetrate her, and her entire body tightens up in response.

Ichigo takes one giant breath, before he pushes in as hard as he can, in order to make it as quick and painless as possible for her, but suddenly she's biting his shoulder incredibly hard to keep from shouting out in pain. Once inside, he's amazed that he hasn't already spilled himself into her, considering how good it feels, and he's glad he took care of business earlier, otherwise he might already have finished upon entry.

He stays still since Rukia's body is completely tense, and she still hasn't let go of his shoulder, which makes him think he ought to wait until she lets go.

It feels like the longest wait of his life, until she finally lets go, and opens her eyes to meet his.

"That hurt more than I thought it could." Rukia says in a shaky voice, and Ichigo hates that.

"I'm sorry." He says, and she shakes her head.

"There was no getting around it. Thanks for waiting." Rukia tells him, and he nods his head.

"Can I move yet?" He asks quietly, and Rukia bites her lip.

"Slowly." She asks him, and he does so, feeling like he's found a true heaven in her.

Rukia closes her eyes again, and concentrates on the feeling of Ichigo being inside of her, and the fact that two of them have now become one. It's something she's wanted more than she even realized, and even though she feels like she's throbbing from the pain the first time set upon her, she can also feel something else interesting, and that is a bit of pleasure through the pain.

It isn't long before Ichigo finds his climax, and he buries his face into the pillow next to her head to let out a loud groan of pleasure as he does so.

"Rukia…" Ichigo moans afterwards, since he's never experienced anything like it before, and she opens her eyes.

"Ichigo…" Rukia mutters, and he kisses her passionately, as he pulls himself out of her.

She is staring right into his eyes when he says it, and still she can't believe it.

"I love you more than anybody." Ichigo tells her in a raw voice, full of emotion.

Rukia gasps at the beautiful words coming out of his mouth, words she didn't believe she'd be hearing tonight, but her eyes soften as she looks at him.

"I love you too Ichigo." Rukia tells him, and Ichigo slides off of her to head into the bathroom.

Rukia watches intently as he grabs his boxers and peeks out into the hallway before tearing off at top speed for the bathroom down the hall.

_I guess everyone had a right to think we were a couple…all this time we were building up to admitting it for ourselves, and now I have his love._


End file.
